ABSTRACT
Nature itself makes extensive use of the self-assembly strategy to grow nanoscale structures using the ‘bottom-up’ approach. Probably one of the more spectacular examples of electrostatically driven molecular assembly processes in Nature is the wrapping of DNA around histones to form nucleosomes, the building blocks of chromosomes (Sletmoen et al., 2008). Another impressive example of Nature’s self-assembly strategy, relating specifically to food colloids, is the self-association of the major milk protein, casein. This archetypal association colloid, the so-called ‘casein micelle’, supplies calcium ions and protein to the human diet in a readily assimilated functional form (Holt, 1992; Horne, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2006; Dickinson, 2006a).
