Structural mimics of viruses through peptide/DNA co-assembly.
A synthetic mimic of viral structure has been constructed by the synergistic co-assembly of a 16-amino acid peptide and plasmid DNA. The rational design of this short peptide, including segments for binding DNA and forming β-sheet, is inspired by viral capsid protein. The resulting nanostructures, which we term nanococoons, appear as ellipsoids of virus-like dimension (65 × 47 nm) and display repeating stripes of ∼4 nm wide. We propose that the co-assembly process involves DNA as a template to assist the organization of peptide strands by electrostatic interaction, while the bilayer β-sheets and their lateral association stabilize the peptide "capsid" and organize the DNA within. The hierarchy affords an extremely stable structure, protecting peptide and DNA against enzymatic digestion. It opens a new and facile avenue to fabricate viral alternatives with diverse functions.
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and ‡Division of Biomedical Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology , Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China.
Rong
R
Ni
Ying
Y
Chau
D040761:Biomimetic Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D014780:Viruses / Q000737:chemistry*; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
D036022:Capsid Proteins; D010455:Peptides; D014867:Water; D004247:DNA