Liquid Crystalline Phases of Poly-?-Benzyl-Glutamate in Solution

Abstract
Recent work on oriented liquid crystalline solutions of the synthetic polypeptide poly-γ-benzyl-L-glutamate in the “complex” phase is reviewed and some new results reported. The similarity between some features of the X-ray diffraction pattern from this phase and the patterns from certain molluscan muscles suggests that the coiled-coil model for the protein chains in the paramyosin filament of these muscles may not be adequate. A highly ordered liquid crystalline phase of the racemic form of poly-γ-benzyl-glutamate is discussed and some features of its diffraction pattern are explained.