In an effort to synthesize supraicosahedral iridaboranes, pyrolysis of [Cp*IrCl2]2 with excess [BH3·] was carried out, and this synthesis afforded the isomeric iridaborane [(Cp*Ir)2B6H6] clusters 1 and 2. The geometry of 1 was determined to be dodecahedral, i.e., similar to that of [B8H8](2-), whereas 2 was found to exhibit a cluster shape that can be derived from a nine-vertex tricapped trigonal prism by removing one of the capped vertices. The calculation of a large HOMO-LUMO gap further rationalized the isocloso structures for these isomers.

IBMPFD/ALS is a genetic disorder caused by a single amino acid mutation on the p97 ATPase, promoting ATPase activity and cofactor dysregulation. The disease mechanism underlying p97 ATPase malfunction remains unclear. To understand how the mutation alters the ATPase regulation, we assembled a full-length p97R155H with its p47 cofactor and first visualized their structures using single-particle cryo-EM. More than one-third of the population was the dodecameric form. Nucleotide presence dissociates the dodecamer into two hexamers for its highly elevated function. The N-domains of the p97R155H mutant all show up configurations in ADP- or ATPγS-bound states. Our functional and structural analyses showed that the p47 binding is likely to impact the p97R155H ATPase activities via changing the conformations of arginine fingers. These functional and structural analyses underline the ATPase dysregulation with the miscommunication between the functional modules of the p97R155H.

We present here the combination of experimental and computational modeling tools for the design and characterization of protein−DNA hybrid nanostructures. Our work incorporates several features in the design of these nanostructures: (1) modeling of the protein−DNA linker identity and length; (2) optimizing the design of protein−DNA cages to account for mechanical stresses; (3) probing the incorporation efficiency of protein−DNA conjugates into DNA nanostructures. The modeling tools were experimentally validated using structural characterization methods like cryo-TEM and AFM. Our method can be used for fitting low-resolution electron density maps when structural insights cannot be deciphered from experiments, as well as enable insilico validation of nanostructured systems before their experimental realization. These tools will facilitate the design of complex hybrid protein−DNA nanostructures that seamlessly integrate the two different biomolecules.

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Simultaneous delivery of small molecules and nucleic acids using a single vehicle can lead to novel combination treatments and multifunctional carriers for a variety of diseases. In this study, we...