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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2017 Jan 1.
Published in final edited form as: Wiley Interdiscip Rev Nanomed Nanobiotechnol. 2015 Jun 26;8(1):123–138. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1350

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Biological polymers represent a rich source for the engineering of nanostructures. Three classes of biopolymers are evaluated within this review: DNA oligonucleotides, polysaccharides, and protein-based sequences. Each has the ability to specifically self-associate, which can modulate the formation of a wide variety of nanostructures. As their association depends on kinetics and/or thermodynamics, these structures are responsive to temperature. All produced from biological sources, they can be engineered by manipulation at the genetic level to varying degrees. The exquisite control exerted by biological synthetic pathways suggests that they are excellent candidates to engineer useful biomaterials. Adapted with permission from the American Chemical Society28, 79, 81. Adapted with permission from John Wiley and Sons41. Adapted with permission from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and The Royal Society of Chemistry61.