Biotechnological routes to synthesize peptide based hydrogels in aqueous medium

Peptide applications are growing significantly in the field of biomedicine (e.g.immunology, cell signaling, etc.). A recent projection valued that the global peptidetherapeutics market would be worth nearly $2 billion in 2010. Such a significant andrapid development is due to the major clinical value that the specificity of peptides hasbeen acknowledged. A growing number of applications in a wide range of treatments forsuch conditions as cancers, allergies, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, and heart failure iscurrently under development, with more than 400 peptide based drugs in advancedpreclinical phases worldwide to this date. Among peptides, peptide based hydrogelatorsrepresent an extremely interesting class because they can trigger hydrogel formationgiving rise to the formation of biocompatible biomaterials of biological relevance. Forexample, applications include tissue engineering and drug delivery systems. Moreover,self assembling peptides could be used to develop injectable devices.Recently, relevant research efforts are being made in the field of biofabrication ofsuch self-assembling biomaterials. In particular, different classes of enzymes can be usedto trigger the formation of peptidic bonds between precursors that form peptidichydrogelators. Several enzymes derived from GRAS microorganisms can be employed tocatalyze this reaction in aqueous medium, avoiding the use of organic solvents. Suchnovel, "green" synthetic procedures could have a strong impact on peptide production byintroducing milder reaction conditions and limiting the use of harmful chemicals. © 2012 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.