title: Reprogramming virus nanoparticles to bind metal ions upon activation with heat.
abstract: We have reprogrammed the stimulus-responsive conformational change property of a virus nanoparticle (VNP) to enable the surface exposure of metal binding motifs upon activation with heat. The VNP is based on the widely investigated adeno-associated virus (AAV). An intrinsic bioactive functionality of AAV was genetically replaced with a hexahistidine (His) tag. The peptide domain with the inserted His tag is normally inaccessible. Upon external stimulation with heat, the VNP undergoes a conformational change, resulting in externalization of His tag-containing domains and the conferred ability to bind metal. We show that beyond this newfound functionality of the capsid, the VNPs maintain many of the wild-type capsid properties. Our work lays the groundwork for developing stimulus-responsive VNPs that can be used as "smart" building blocks for the creation of higher order structures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Musick
authors.forename: Kellie I
authors.initials: KI
authors.lastname: McConnell
authors.forename: Jerry K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Lue
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Clive
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Junghae
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Suh
mesh_terms: D002213:Capsid / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D002460:Cell Line; D002614:Chelating Agents / Q000378:metabolism; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D000229:Dependovirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006639:Histidine / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D007477:Ions / Q000378:metabolism; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000378:metabolism*; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry / Q000821:virology*; D009842:Oligopeptides / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010322:Parvoviridae Infections / Q000821:virology; D010957:Plasmids; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014162:Transfection; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014771:Virion / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002614:Chelating Agents; C471213:His-His-His-His-His-His; D007477:Ions; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D009842:Oligopeptides; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins; D006639:Histidine