(a) Distance between the center of mass (COM) of the C22G1 and the CholSG1 self-assembled dendrimers and the COM of the selected dendron subjected to the different pullover forces (labelled on the left) during the corresponding CF-SMD simulations. (b) CF-SMD simulation snapshots of a micelle of the C22G1 (upper panel) and the CholSG1 self-assembled dendrimers TEM experiencing a pullout force of 1.6 kcal/mol Å taken at the same three representative times along the respective simulation trajectories. In both panels, the dendrons in each micelle are shown by their van der Waals surface, colored as follows: Hydrophobic cores, blue (C22G1) and purple (CholSG1); common hydrophilic head, gray; pullout monomers, red (C22G1) and orange (CholSG1). Na+ and Cl− ions are shown as pink and green transparent spheres, while water is represented by a transparent light gray field. Adapted from [29] with the permission of The Royal Society of Chemistry.