The collection of chemical techniques that can be used to attach synthetic groups to proteins has expanded substantially in recent years. Each of these approaches allows new protein targets to be addressed, leading to advances in biological understanding, new protein-drug conjugates, targeted medical imaging agents and hybrid materials with complex functions. The protein modification reactions in current use vary widely in their inherent site selectivity, overall yields and functional group compatibility. Some are more amenable to large-scale bioconjugate production, and a number of techniques can be used to label a single protein in a complex biological mixture. This review examines the way in which experimental circumstances influence one's selection of an appropriate protein modification strategy. It also provides a simple decision tree that can narrow down the possibilities in many instances. The review concludes with example studies that examine how this decision process has been applied in different contexts.

Soft structures in nature such as protein assemblies can organize reversibly into functional and often hierarchical architectures through noncovalent interactions. Molecularly encoding this dynamic capability in synthetic materials has remained an elusive goal. We report on hydrogels of peptide-DNA conjugates and peptides that organize into superstructures of intertwined filaments that disassemble upon the addition of molecules or changes in charge density. Experiments and simulations demonstrate that this response requires large scale spatial redistribution of molecules directed by strong noncovalent interactions among them. Simulations also suggest that the chemically reversible structures can only occur within a limited range of supramolecular cohesive energies. Storage moduli of the hydrogels change reversibly as superstructures form and disappear, as does the phenotype of neural cells in contact with these materials.

Bacteriophage MS2 was used to construct a targeted, multivalent photodynamic therapy vehicle for the treatment of Jurkat leukemia T cells. The self-assembling spherical virus capsid was modified on the interior surface with up to 180 porphyrins capable of generating cytotoxic singlet oxygen upon illumination. The exterior of the capsid was modified with ∼20 copies of a Jurkat-specific aptamer using an oxidative coupling reaction targeting an unnatural amino acid. The capsids were able to target and selectively kill more than 76% of the Jurkat cells after only 20 min of illumination. Capsids modified with a control DNA strand did not target Jurkat cells, and capsids modified with the aptamer were found to be specific for Jurkat cells over U266 cells (a control B cell line). The doubly modified capsids were also able to kill Jurkat cells selectively even when mixed with erythrocytes, suggesting the possibility of using our system to target blood-borne cancers or other pathogens in the blood supply.