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Li M, Li J, Liu K, Zhang H. Artificial structural proteins: Synthesis, assembly and material applications. Bioorg Chem 2024; 144:107162. [PMID: 38308999 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2024.107162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 01/14/2024] [Accepted: 01/27/2024] [Indexed: 02/05/2024]
Abstract
Structural proteins have evolved over billions of years and offer outstanding mechanical properties, such as resilience, toughness and stiffness. Advances in modular protein engineering, polypeptide modification, and synthetic biology have led to the development of novel biomimetic structural proteins to perform in biomedical and military fields. However, the development of customized structural proteins and assemblies with superior performance remains a major challenge, due to the inherent limitations of biosynthesis, difficulty in mimicking the complexed macroscale assembly, etc. This review summarizes the approaches for the design and production of biomimetic structural proteins, and their chemical modifications for multiscale assembly. Furthermore, we discuss the function tailoring and current applications of biomimetic structural protein assemblies. A perspective of future research is to reveal how the mechanical properties are encoded in the sequences and conformations. This review, therefore, provides an important reference for the development of structural proteins-mimetics from replication of nature to even outperforming nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Li
- State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China; School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Jingjing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China.
| | - Kai Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China; School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China; Engineering Research Center of Advanced Rare Earth Materials, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Hongjie Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Rare Earth Resource Utilization, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China; School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China; Engineering Research Center of Advanced Rare Earth Materials, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
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2
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Mukherjee S, Shanmugam G. A Novel Surfactant with Short Hydrophobic Head and Long Hydrophilic Tail Generates Vesicles with Unique Structural Feature. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2023; 19:e2206906. [PMID: 36799147 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202206906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Revised: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Surfactant molecules typically have a long hydrophobic tail and a short hydrophilic head group. It remains unexplored if surfactants can have a short hydrophobic head group and a long hydrophilic tail. Designing such surfactants is a challenge as a lengthy hydrophilic tail would completely solubilize the molecules. In this context, herein, the Fmoc-functionalized Gly-Pro-Hyp (GPO) tripeptide repeat-based molecule (Fm-GPO) with fluorenyl moiety as a short hydrophobic head and peptide as a long hydrophilic tail is demonstrated as a reverse surfactant at physiological pH, for the first time. π-π stacking of the fluorenyl moieties and intermolecular hydrogen bonding between the peptide chains with extended polyproline-II structure promoted the self-assembly into spherical vesicles with a unique feature of a large hydrophilic area in the interior and exterior of the bilayer. The current Fm-GPO system offers a new class of surfactants with unique features that can aid in the design of drug-loaded vehicles, which can be target-specific as the peptide chain can be manipulated with different functional ultra-short peptide sequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Smriti Mukherjee
- Organic & Bioorganic Chemistry Laboratory, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) - Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Adyar, Chennai, 600020, India
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002, India
| | - Ganesh Shanmugam
- Organic & Bioorganic Chemistry Laboratory, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) - Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Adyar, Chennai, 600020, India
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, 201002, India
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3
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Miserez A, Yu J, Mohammadi P. Protein-Based Biological Materials: Molecular Design and Artificial Production. Chem Rev 2023; 123:2049-2111. [PMID: 36692900 PMCID: PMC9999432 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Polymeric materials produced from fossil fuels have been intimately linked to the development of industrial activities in the 20th century and, consequently, to the transformation of our way of living. While this has brought many benefits, the fabrication and disposal of these materials is bringing enormous sustainable challenges. Thus, materials that are produced in a more sustainable fashion and whose degradation products are harmless to the environment are urgently needed. Natural biopolymers─which can compete with and sometimes surpass the performance of synthetic polymers─provide a great source of inspiration. They are made of natural chemicals, under benign environmental conditions, and their degradation products are harmless. Before these materials can be synthetically replicated, it is essential to elucidate their chemical design and biofabrication. For protein-based materials, this means obtaining the complete sequences of the proteinaceous building blocks, a task that historically took decades of research. Thus, we start this review with a historical perspective on early efforts to obtain the primary sequences of load-bearing proteins, followed by the latest developments in sequencing and proteomic technologies that have greatly accelerated sequencing of extracellular proteins. Next, four main classes of protein materials are presented, namely fibrous materials, bioelastomers exhibiting high reversible deformability, hard bulk materials, and biological adhesives. In each class, we focus on the design at the primary and secondary structure levels and discuss their interplays with the mechanical response. We finally discuss earlier and the latest research to artificially produce protein-based materials using biotechnology and synthetic biology, including current developments by start-up companies to scale-up the production of proteinaceous materials in an economically viable manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Miserez
- Center for Sustainable Materials (SusMat), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore637553.,School of Biological Sciences, NTU, Singapore637551
| | - Jing Yu
- Center for Sustainable Materials (SusMat), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore637553.,Institute for Digital Molecular Analytics and Science (IDMxS), NTU, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore637553
| | - Pezhman Mohammadi
- VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., Espoo, UusimaaFI-02044, Finland
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4
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Park S, Chin-Hun Kuo J, Reesink HL, Paszek MJ. Recombinant mucin biotechnology and engineering. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2023; 193:114618. [PMID: 36375719 PMCID: PMC10253230 DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2022.114618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Mucins represent a largely untapped class of polymeric building block for biomaterials, therapeutics, and other biotechnology. Because the mucin polymer backbone is genetically encoded, sequence-specific mucins with defined physical and biochemical properties can be fabricated using recombinant technologies. The pendent O-glycans of mucins are increasingly implicated in immunomodulation, suppression of pathogen virulence, and other biochemical activities. Recent advances in engineered cell production systems are enabling the scalable synthesis of recombinant mucins with precisely tuned glycan side chains, offering exciting possibilities to tune the biological functionality of mucin-based products. New metabolic and chemoenzymatic strategies enable further tuning and functionalization of mucin O-glycans, opening new possibilities to expand the chemical diversity and functionality of mucin building blocks. In this review, we discuss these advances, and the opportunities for engineered mucins in biomedical applications ranging from in vitro models to therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sangwoo Park
- Field of Biophysics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Joe Chin-Hun Kuo
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Heidi L Reesink
- Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Matthew J Paszek
- Field of Biophysics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA; Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA; Nancy E. and Peter C. Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
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5
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Gabryelczyk B, Sammalisto FE, Gandier JA, Feng J, Beaune G, Timonen JV, Linder MB. Recombinant protein condensation inside E. coli enables the development of building blocks for bioinspired materials engineering – Biomimetic spider silk protein as a case study. Mater Today Bio 2022; 17:100492. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2022.100492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Revised: 11/05/2022] [Accepted: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
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6
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Hossain MS, Zhang Z, Ashok S, Jenks AR, Lynch CJ, Hougland JL, Mozhdehi D. Temperature-Responsive Nano-Biomaterials from Genetically Encoded Farnesylated Disordered Proteins. ACS APPLIED BIO MATERIALS 2022; 5:1846-1856. [PMID: 35044146 PMCID: PMC9115796 DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.1c01162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Despite broad interest in understanding the biological implications of protein farnesylation in regulating different facets of cell biology, the use of this post-translational modification to develop protein-based materials and therapies remains underexplored. The progress has been slow due to the lack of accessible methodologies to generate farnesylated proteins with broad physicochemical diversities rapidly. This limitation, in turn, has hindered the empirical elucidation of farnesylated proteins' sequence-structure-function rules. To address this gap, we genetically engineered prokaryotes to develop operationally simple, high-yield biosynthetic routes to produce farnesylated proteins and revealed determinants of their emergent material properties (nano-aggregation and phase-behavior) using scattering, calorimetry, and microscopy. These outcomes foster the development of farnesylated proteins as recombinant therapeutics or biomaterials with molecularly programmable assembly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md. Shahadat Hossain
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - Zhe Zhang
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - Sudhat Ashok
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - Ashley R. Jenks
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - Christopher J. Lynch
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - James L. Hougland
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
- Department
of Biology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
- BioInspired
Syracuse: Institute for Material and Living Systems, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
| | - Davoud Mozhdehi
- Department
of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
- Department
of Biology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
- Department
of Biomedical and Chemical Engineering, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
- BioInspired
Syracuse: Institute for Material and Living Systems, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244, United States
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7
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Song WW, Qian ZG, Liu H, Chen HF, Kaplan DL, Xia XX. On-Demand Regulation of Dual Thermosensitive Protein Hydrogels. ACS Macro Lett 2021; 10:395-400. [PMID: 35549223 DOI: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.1c00062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Despite considerable progress having been made in thermosensitive protein hydrogels, regulating their thermal transitions remains a challenge due to the intricate molecular structures and interactions of the underlying protein polymers. Here we report a genetic fusion strategy to tune the unique dual thermal transitions of the C-terminal domain (CTD) of spider major ampullate spidroin 1, and explore the regulation mechanism by biophysical characterization and molecular dynamics simulations. We found that the fusion of elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) tuned the dual transition temperatures of CTD to a physiologically relevant window, by introducing extra hydrogen bonding at low temperatures and hydrophobic interactions at high temperatures. The resulting hydrogels constructed from the fusion proteins were demonstrated to be a promising vehicle for cell preservation and delivery. This study provides insights on the regulation of the dual thermosensitive protein hydrogels and suggests a potential application of the hydrogels for consolidated cell storage and delivery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Wen Song
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Zhi-Gang Qian
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Hao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Hai-Feng Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - David L. Kaplan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tufts University, 4 Colby Street, Medford, Massachusetts 02155, United States
| | - Xiao-Xia Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, China
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8
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Balu R, Dutta NK, Dutta AK, Choudhury NR. Resilin-mimetics as a smart biomaterial platform for biomedical applications. Nat Commun 2021; 12:149. [PMID: 33420053 PMCID: PMC7794388 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-20375-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2020] [Accepted: 11/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Intrinsically disordered proteins have dramatically changed the structure-function paradigm of proteins in the 21st century. Resilin is a native elastic insect protein, which features intrinsically disordered structure, unusual multi-stimuli responsiveness and outstanding resilience. Advances in computational techniques, polypeptide synthesis methods and modular protein engineering routines have led to the development of novel resilin-like polypeptides (RLPs) including modular RLPs, expanding their applications in tissue engineering, drug delivery, bioimaging, biosensors, catalysis and bioelectronics. However, how the responsive behaviour of RLPs is encoded in the amino acid sequence level remains elusive. This review summarises the milestones of RLPs, and discusses the development of modular RLP-based biomaterials, their current applications, challenges and future perspectives. A perspective of future research is that sequence and responsiveness profiling of RLPs can provide a new platform for the design and development of new modular RLP-based biomaterials with programmable structure, properties and functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajkamal Balu
- Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia
| | - Naba K Dutta
- Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
| | - Ankit K Dutta
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Namita Roy Choudhury
- Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, 3000, Australia.
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9
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Muiznieks LD, Sharpe S, Pomès R, Keeley FW. Role of Liquid–Liquid Phase Separation in Assembly of Elastin and Other Extracellular Matrix Proteins. J Mol Biol 2018; 430:4741-4753. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2018.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2018] [Revised: 05/29/2018] [Accepted: 06/01/2018] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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10
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Muiznieks LD, Keeley FW. Biomechanical Design of Elastic Protein Biomaterials: A Balance of Protein Structure and Conformational Disorder. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2016; 3:661-679. [DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.6b00469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lisa D. Muiznieks
- Molecular
Structure and Function Program, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, 686 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 0A4
| | - Fred W. Keeley
- Molecular
Structure and Function Program, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, 686 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 0A4
- Department
of Biochemistry and Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, 1 King’s College Circle, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 1A8
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11
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Muiznieks LD, Keeley FW. Phase separation and mechanical properties of an elastomeric biomaterial from spider wrapping silk and elastin block copolymers. Biopolymers 2016; 105:693-703. [DOI: 10.1002/bip.22888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2016] [Revised: 06/01/2016] [Accepted: 06/03/2016] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lisa D. Muiznieks
- Molecular Structure and Function Program; Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children; Toronto Canada
| | - Fred W. Keeley
- Molecular Structure and Function Program; Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children; Toronto Canada
- Department of Biochemistry; University of Toronto; Canada
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine; University of Toronto; Canada
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12
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Tang NC, Chilkoti A. Combinatorial codon scrambling enables scalable gene synthesis and amplification of repetitive proteins. NATURE MATERIALS 2016; 15:419-24. [PMID: 26726995 PMCID: PMC4809025 DOI: 10.1038/nmat4521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2015] [Accepted: 11/25/2015] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Most genes are synthesized using seamless assembly methods that rely on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). However, PCR of genes encoding repetitive proteins either fails or generates nonspecific products. Motivated by the need to efficiently generate new protein polymers through high-throughput gene synthesis, here we report a codon-scrambling algorithm that enables the PCR-based gene synthesis of repetitive proteins by exploiting the codon redundancy of amino acids and finding the least-repetitive synonymous gene sequence. We also show that the codon-scrambling problem is analogous to the well-known travelling salesman problem, and obtain an exact solution to it by using De Bruijn graphs and a modern mixed integer linear programme solver. As experimental proof of the utility of this approach, we use it to optimize the synthetic genes for 19 repetitive proteins, and show that the gene fragments are amenable to PCR-based gene assembly and recombinant expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas C Tang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA
| | - Ashutosh Chilkoti
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA
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13
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McGann CL, Akins RE, Kiick KL. Resilin-PEG Hybrid Hydrogels Yield Degradable Elastomeric Scaffolds with Heterogeneous Microstructure. Biomacromolecules 2016; 17:128-40. [PMID: 26646060 PMCID: PMC4850080 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.5b01255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Hydrogels derived from resilin-like polypeptides (RLPs) have shown outstanding mechanical resilience and cytocompatibility; expanding the versatility of RLP-based materials via conjugation with other polypeptides and polymers would offer great promise in the design of a range of materials. Here, we present an investigation of the biochemical and mechanical properties of hybrid hydrogels composed of a recombinant RLP and a multiarm PEG macromer. These hybrid hydrogels can be rapidly cross-linked through a Michael-type addition reaction between the thiols of cysteine residues on the RLP and vinyl sulfone groups on the multiarm PEG. Oscillatory rheology and tensile testing confirmed the formation of elastomeric hydrogels with mechanical resilience comparable to aortic elastin; hydrogel stiffness was easily modulated through the cross-linking ratio. Macromolecular phase separation of the RLP-PEG hydrogels offers the unique advantage of imparting a heterogeneous microstructure, which can be used to localize cells, through simple mixing and cross-linking. Assessment of degradation of the RLP by matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) illustrated the specific proteolysis of the polypeptide in both its soluble form and when cross-linked into hydrogels. Finally, the successful encapsulation and viable three-dimensional culture of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) demonstrated the cytocompatibility of the RLP-PEG gels. Overall, the cytocompatibility, elastomeric mechanical properties, microheterogeneity, and degradability of the RLP-PEG hybrid hydrogels offer a suite of promising properties for the development of cell-instructive, structured tissue engineering scaffolds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher L. McGann
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Robert E. Akins
- Nemours – Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, Department of Biomedical Research, Wilmington, DE 19803, United States
| | - Kristi L. Kiick
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
- Delaware Biotechnology Institute, 15 Innovation Way, Newark, Delaware 19711, United States
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14
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Qian ZG, Zhou ML, Song WW, Xia XX. Dual Thermosensitive Hydrogels Assembled from the Conserved C-Terminal Domain of Spider Dragline Silk. Biomacromolecules 2015; 16:3704-11. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.5b01231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Zhi-Gang Qian
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, and School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
| | - Ming-Liang Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, and School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
| | - Wen-Wen Song
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, and School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
| | - Xiao-Xia Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, and School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, P. R. China
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15
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Roberts S, Dzuricky M, Chilkoti A. Elastin-like polypeptides as models of intrinsically disordered proteins. FEBS Lett 2015; 589:2477-86. [PMID: 26325592 PMCID: PMC4599720 DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2015.08.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2015] [Revised: 08/18/2015] [Accepted: 08/19/2015] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) are a class of stimuli-responsive biopolymers inspired by the intrinsically disordered domains of tropoelastin that are composed of repeats of the VPGXG pentapeptide motif, where X is a "guest residue". They undergo a reversible, thermally triggered lower critical solution temperature (LCST) phase transition, which has been utilized for a variety of applications including protein purification, affinity capture, immunoassays, and drug delivery. ELPs have been extensively studied as protein polymers and as biomaterials, but their relationship to other disordered proteins has heretofore not been established. The biophysical properties of ELPs that lend them their unique material behavior are similar to the properties of many intrinsically disordered proteins (IDP). Their low sequence complexity, phase behavior, and elastic properties make them an interesting "minimal" artificial IDP, and the study of ELPs can hence provide insights into the behavior of other more complex IDPs. Motivated by this emerging realization of the similarities between ELPs and IDPs, this review discusses the biophysical properties of ELPs, their biomedical utility, and their relationship to other disordered polypeptide sequences.
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16
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Balu R, Knott R, Cowieson NP, Elvin CM, Hill AJ, Choudhury NR, Dutta NK. Structural ensembles reveal intrinsic disorder for the multi-stimuli responsive bio-mimetic protein Rec1-resilin. Sci Rep 2015; 5:10896. [PMID: 26042819 PMCID: PMC4455251 DOI: 10.1038/srep10896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Accepted: 04/21/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Rec1-resilin is the first recombinant resilin-mimetic protein polymer, synthesized from exon-1 of the Drosophila melanogaster gene CG15920 that has demonstrated unusual multi-stimuli responsiveness in aqueous solution. Crosslinked hydrogels of Rec1-resilin have also displayed remarkable mechanical properties including near-perfect rubber-like elasticity. The structural basis of these extraordinary properties is not clearly understood. Here we combine a computational and experimental investigation to examine structural ensembles of Rec1-resilin in aqueous solution. The structure of Rec1-resilin in aqueous solutions is investigated experimentally using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). Both bench-top and synchrotron SAXS are employed to extract structural data sets of Rec1-resilin and to confirm their validity. Computational approaches have been applied to these experimental data sets in order to extract quantitative information about structural ensembles including radius of gyration, pair-distance distribution function, and the fractal dimension. The present work confirms that Rec1-resilin is an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) that displays equilibrium structural qualities between those of a structured globular protein and a denatured protein. The ensemble optimization method (EOM) analysis reveals a single conformational population with partial compactness. This work provides new insight into the structural ensembles of Rec1-resilin in solution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajkamal Balu
- Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes campus, Mawson lakes, South Australia 5095, Australia
| | - Robert Knott
- ANSTO, Private Mail Bag, Kirrawee, New South Wales 2232, Australia
| | - Nathan P. Cowieson
- Centre for Synchrotron Science, Monash University, Victoria 3800, Australia
| | - Christopher M. Elvin
- CSIRO Agriculture, Level 6, Queensland Bioscience Precinct, St Lucia, Queensland 4067, Australia
| | - Anita J. Hill
- CSIRO Manufacturing, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Namita R. Choudhury
- Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes campus, Mawson lakes, South Australia 5095, Australia
| | - Naba K. Dutta
- Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes campus, Mawson lakes, South Australia 5095, Australia
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Cai L, Heilshorn SC. Designing ECM-mimetic materials using protein engineering. Acta Biomater 2014; 10:1751-60. [PMID: 24365704 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2013.12.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2013] [Revised: 12/13/2013] [Accepted: 12/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The natural extracellular matrix (ECM), with its multitude of evolved cell-instructive and cell-responsive properties, provides inspiration and guidelines for the design of engineered biomaterials. One strategy to create ECM-mimetic materials is the modular design of protein-based engineered ECM (eECM) scaffolds. This modular design strategy involves combining multiple protein domains with different functionalities into a single, modular polymer sequence, resulting in a multifunctional matrix with independent tunability of the individual domain functions. These eECMs often enable decoupled control over multiple material properties for fundamental studies of cell-matrix interactions. In addition, since the eECMs are frequently composed entirely of bioresorbable amino acids, these matrices have immense clinical potential for a variety of regenerative medicine applications. This brief review demonstrates how fundamental knowledge gained from structure-function studies of native proteins can be exploited in the design of novel protein-engineered biomaterials. While the field of protein-engineered biomaterials has existed for over 20years, the community is only now beginning to fully explore the diversity of functional peptide modules that can be incorporated into these materials. We have chosen to highlight recent examples that either (i) demonstrate exemplary use as matrices with cell-instructive and cell-responsive properties or (ii) demonstrate outstanding creativity in terms of novel molecular-level design and macro-level functionality.
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