Engineering the Architecture of Elastin‐Like Polypeptides: From Unimers to Hierarchical Self‐Assembly

Abstract

Well‐defined tunable nanostructures formed through the hierarchical self‐assembly of peptide building blocks have drawn significant attention due to their potential applications in biomedical science. Artificial protein polymers derived from elastin‐like polypeptides (ELPs), which are based on the repeating sequence of tropoelastin (the water‐soluble precursor to elastin), provide a promising platform for creating nanostructures due to their biocompatibility, ease of synthesis, and customizable architecture. By designing the sequence and composition of ELPs at the gene level, their physicochemical properties can be controlled to a degree that is unmatched by synthetic polymers. A variety of ELP‐based nanostructures are designed, inspired by the self‐assembly of elastin and other proteins in biological systems. The choice of building blocks determines not only the physical properties of the nanostructures, but also their self‐assembly into architectures ranging from spherical micelles to elongated nanofibers. This review focuses on the molecular determinants of ELP and ELP‐hybrid self‐assembly and formation of spherical, rod‐like, worm‐like, fibrillar, and vesicle architectures. A brief discussion of the potential biomedical applications of these supramolecular assemblies is also included.

An Artificial Phase‐Transitional Underwater Bioglue with Robust and Switchable Adhesion Performance

“…Recursive directional ligation (RDL) strategy [21] and genetic engineering [22,23] were employed to synthesize ELPs including K72, V40K72, and V80K72 (Figure 1A;Supporting Information, Figures S1-S3). To obtain ahigh-purified ELPs, the inverse transition cycling (ITC) were utilized, according to its thermally-controlled ability (Supporting Information, Figure S2).…”

Charge Density as a Molecular Modulator of Nanostructuration in Intrinsically Disordered Protein Polymers

“…11 This recombinant synthesis enables the rational design of hierarchically assembled protein nanosystems, including micelles, vesicles and physical hydrogels, with potential application in biotechnology and materials engineering. 12,13 Electrostatic interactions between ionic amino acids are one of the parameters that mediate self-assembling of IDPs and IDPPs. [14][15][16] Indeed, the presence of ionic amino acids contribute to phase transition and folding of ELRs and ELR-based bioconjugates, 17,18 enabling the production of innovative supramolecular nanomaterials.…”

An Artificial Phase‐Transitional Underwater Bioglue with Robust and Switchable Adhesion Performance

“…Thus, the (VPGVG)n part was crucial to the phase transition. At the LCST, thermal disruption of the water network, loss of hydration of the (VPGVG) moiety, and an increase in its hydrophobicity, lead to physical transition [19, 21, 27] …”