Nanostructure Engineering by Simple Tuning of Lipid Combinations

Controlling Protein Enrichment in Lipid Sponge Phase Droplets using SNAP-tag Bioconjugation

All cells use organized lipid compartments to facilitate specific biological functions. Membrane-bound organelles create defined spatial environments that favor unique chemical reactions while isolating incompatible biological processes. Despite the fundamental role of cellular organelles, there is a scarcity of methods for preparing functional artificial lipid-based compartments. Here, we demonstrate a robust bioconjugation system for sequestering proteins into zwitterionic lipid sponge phase droplets. Incorporation of benzylguanine (BG)-modified phospholipids that form stable covalent linkages with an O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (SNAP-tag) fusion protein enables programmable control of protein capture. We show that this methodology can be used to anchor hydrophilic proteins at the lipid-aqueous interface, concentrating them within an accessible but protected chemical environment. SNAP-tag technology enables the integration of proteins that regulate complex biological functions in lipid sponge phase droplets, and should facilitate the development of advanced lipid-based artificial organelles.

Rational Fabrication of Multiple Dimensional Assemblies from Tryptophan-Based Racemate

Fabricating structural complex assemblies from simple amino acid-based derivatives is attracting great research interests due to their easy accessibility and preparation. However, the morphological regulation of racemates (an equimolar mixture of enantiomers) were largely overlooked. In this work, through rational modulation of kinetic and thermodynamic parameters, we achieved multiple dimensional architectures employing tryptophan-based racemate (RPWM). Upon assembling, 1D bundled nanofibers, 2D lamellar nanostructure and 3D urchin-like microflowers could be obtained depending on the solvents used. The corresponding morphology evolutions were successfully illustrated by changing the enantiomeric excess (ee) value. Moreover, for RPWM, uniform 0D nanospheres were formed in H 2 O under 4 ℃, which could spontaneously convert into lamella under ambient temperature. Taking advantages of its temperature-responsive phase change behavior, RPWM assemblies exhibited excellent removal efficiency for organic dye RhB, and could be reused for several consecutive cycles without significant changes in its removal performance. Taken together, it's rational to envision that the engineering of racemates assembly pathways can greatly increase the robustness in a wide variety of supramolecular materials and further lead to their blooming versatile applications.