title: Deconstruction of complex protein signaling switches: a roadmap toward engineering higher-order gene regulators.
abstract: The control of gene expression is an important tool for metabolic engineering, the design of synthetic gene networks, gene-function analysis, and protein manufacturing. The most successful approaches to date are based on modulating messenger RNA (mRNA) synthesis via their inducible coupling to transcriptional effectors, which requires biosensing functionality. A hallmark of biological sensing is the conversion of an exogenous signal, usually a small molecule or environmental cue such as a protein-ligand interaction, into a useful output or response. One of the most utilized regulatory proteins is the lactose repressor (LacI). In this review we will (1) explore the mechanochemical structure-function relationship of LacI; (2) discuss how the physical attributes of LacI can be leveraged to identify and understand other regulatory proteins; (3) investigate the designability (tunability) of LacI; (4) discuss the potential of the modular design of novel regulatory proteins, fashioned after the topology and mechanochemical properties of LacI. WIREs Nanomed Nanobiotechnol 2017, 9:e1461. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1461 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.
authors.affiliation: Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Davey
authors.affiliation: Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Atlanta, GA, USA.
authors.forename: Corey J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000494:Allosteric Regulation; D015374:Biosensing Techniques; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D060847:Metabolic Engineering; D011506:Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins