Designed coiled-coil peptide nanoparticles with tunable self-assembly: distinct ordered nanostructures via nonnatural side chain modification and electrostatic screening
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Peptide 'bundlemers' are homotetrameric coiled-coils that form discrete cylindrical nanoparticles in aqueous solution. The stability of the coiled-coil design enables selective modification of exterior residues to program interparticle interactions. We designed a single charge-type (SC) bundlemer, containing only positive ionizable groups on its exterior, with allyloxycarbonyl (alloc)-protected lysine positioned to direct hydrophobic interparticle assembly. SC bundlemers with no alloc functionalization form liquid crystalline phases through end-to-end stacking of nanoparticles into chains that are laterally repulsive due to electrostatic interactions. Incorporation of alloc groups into the SC design yielded different, ordered nanostructures depending on solution conditions. Nematic and hexagonal columnar liquid crystals were formed in pure water, where end-to-end particle stacking and lateral repulsion dominated. In contrast, ordered nanoporous lattices were formed in the presence of salt, where electrostatic screening revealed alloc-driven, lateral hydrophobic interactions coupled with particle end-to-end stacking. Uniquely, the lattices exhibited structure factor signatures identical to those of the previously observed in alloc-modified mixed charge bundlemers, highlighting how precise, protein-like spatial display of desired chemical functionality enables targeted interparticle interactions and tunable nanostructure formation.
Source: Soft Matter
DOI: 10.1039/d5sm00972c
Authors: Amanda L. McCahill, Tianren Zhang, Jacob Schwartz, Yi Shi, Christopher J. Kloxin, Jeffery G. Saven, Darrin J. Pochan
Institutions: University of Delaware, University of Pennsylvania
Language: English
Subfield: Biomaterials
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National Institutes of Health, Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, Harvard University, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Division of Materials Research, Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure, Division of Chemistry, Basic Energy Sciences
Awards: G1177608224, G1187583347, G1453181110, G1555197637, G1703205069, G1742171491, G1787346651, Track 4: Advanced CI Coordination Ecosystem: Monitoring and Measurement Services, G2114340465, G2851536753, G338811424, G3406661761, G34258105, G3562386289, XSEDE 2.0: Integrating, Enabling and Enhancing National Cyberinfrastructure with Expanding Community Involvement, Track 1: ACCESS Resource Allocations Marketplace and Platform Services (RAMPS), G4010157413, G406916872, G4275568664, G4444685404, G4523879168, ACO: An Open CI Ecosystem to Advance Scientific Discovery (OpenCI), NANOMATERIAL CONSTRUCTION THROUGH PEPTIDE COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN AND HIERARCHICAL SOLUTION ASSEMBLY, Track 3: COre National Ecosystem for CyberinfrasTructure (CONECT), G5156331529, G5212984984, G5367127336, G5464919783, G5581067857, Chemical Functionalization and Polymerization of Peptide Particle Assemblies, G6121277264, NANOMATERIAL CONSTRUCTION THROUGH PEPTIDE COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN AND HIERARCHICAL SOLUTION ASSEMBLY, University of Delaware MRSEC - Center for Hybrid, Active, and Responsive Materials (CHARM), G6965887028, G7469836809, G7526614437, G7916508619, G8174472116, Bundlemer-templated Block Copolymers, Track 2: Customized Multi-tier Assistance, Training, and Computational Help (MATCH) for End User ACCESS to CI, G8499740153, G8994211811, G9000217648
OpenAlex ID: W4416868873