Metal‐dependent assembly of a protein nano‐cage
Abstract
Short, alpha‐helical coiled coils provide a simple, modular method to direct the assembly of proteins into higher order structures. We previously demonstrated that by genetically fusing de novo–designed coiled coils of the appropriate oligomerization state to a natural trimeric protein, we could direct the assembly of this protein into various geometrical cages. Here, we have extended this approach by appending a coiled coil designed to trimerize in response to binding divalent transition metal ions and thereby achieve metal ion‐dependent assembly of a tetrahedral protein cage. Ni2+, Co2+, Cu2+, and Zn2+ ions were evaluated, with Ni2+ proving the most effective at mediating protein assembly. Characterization of the assembled protein indicated that the metal ion–protein complex formed discrete globular structures of the diameter expected for a complex containing 12 copies of the protein monomer. Protein assembly could be reversed by removing metal ions with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid or under mildly acidic conditions.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Aug 06, 2019
- Source ID
- 10.1002/pro.3676
Entities
People
- Ajitha S. Cristie‐david
- Neil Marsh
Organizations
- Army Research Office
- University of Michigan