Skip to main content
eScholarship
Open Access Publications from the University of California

UC San Diego

UC San Diego Previously Published Works bannerUC San Diego

Metal-directed, chemically tunable assembly of one-, two- and three-dimensional crystalline protein arrays

Abstract

Proteins represent the most sophisticated building blocks available to an organism and to the laboratory chemist. Yet, in contrast to nearly all other types of molecular building blocks, the designed self-assembly of proteins has largely been inaccessible because of the chemical and structural heterogeneity of protein surfaces. To circumvent the challenge of programming extensive non-covalent interactions to control protein self-assembly, we have previously exploited the directionality and strength of metal coordination interactions to guide the formation of closed, homoligomeric protein assemblies. Here, we extend this strategy to the generation of periodic protein arrays. We show that a monomeric protein with properly oriented coordination motifs on its surface can arrange, on metal binding, into one-dimensional nanotubes and two- or three-dimensional crystalline arrays with dimensions that collectively span nearly the entire nano- and micrometre scale. The assembly of these arrays is tuned predictably by external stimuli, such as metal concentration and pH.

Many UC-authored scholarly publications are freely available on this site because of the UC's open access policies. Let us know how this access is important for you.

Main Content
For improved accessibility of PDF content, download the file to your device.
Current View