Supramolecular Channels Assembled within Intercellular Gaps.

ABSTRACT

Tubular structures exist broadly in biological systems and exhibit important functions including mediating cellular communications. The construction of artificial analogues in living cells would provide a new strategy for chemotherapy. In this report, a kind of supramolecular channel has been constructed within intercellular gaps by mimicking the assembly process and structure of natural gap junctional channels, which consist of hydrophobic tubular modules located in the adjacent cell membranes and hydrophilic modules within the extracellular space. The assembly of the channels was driven by electrostatic interactions. The channels could inhibit tumor cell invasion by preventing cell migration.