Biomolecular Assemblies: Moving from Observation to Predictive Design

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Corey J. Wilson, Georgia Institute of Technology; Andreas S. Bommarius, Georgia Institute of Technology; Julie A. Champion, Georgia Institute of Technology; Yury O. Chernoff, Georgia Institute of Technology; David Lynn, Emory University; Anant K. Paravastu, Georgia Institute of Technology; Chen Liang, Emory University; Ming-Chien Hsieh, Emory University; Jennifer Heemstra, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2018-12-26
• Publisher: American Chemical Society
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2018 American Chemical Society.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00038
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Chemical Reviews
• Volume: 118
• Issue: 24
• Start Page: 11519
• End Page: 11574
• Grant/Funding Information: The authors gratefully acknowledge support from the National Science Foundation (MCB 1747439, CHE 1507385, CBET 1133834, and CBET 1844289 to C.J.W., DMR 1709428 to J.A.C., MCB 1516872 and MCB 1817976 to Y.O.C., CHE 1507932 and DMR BSF 1610377 to D.G.L., CBET 1743432 to A.K.P., CBET 1818476, CHE 1818781, and DMR 1822262 to J.M.H.), National Institutes of Health (P50AG025688 to D.G.L and Y.O.C., R01AG045703 to A.K.P., 1R01GM116991 to J.M.H.), Defense Threat Reduction Agency (CB10543 to J.M.H.), Howard Hughes Medical Institute (to D.G.L.), Russian Science Foundation (14–50-00069 to Y.O.C.), and St. Petersburg State University (15.61.2218.2013 to Y.O.C.)
• Keywords: Science & Technology; AMYLOID FIBRIL FORMATION; Physical Sciences; DE-NOVO DESIGN; SACCHAROMYCES-CEREVISIAE PSI+; REPRESSOR-OPERATOR INTERACTION; VIRUS-LIKE PARTICLES; INTRINSICALLY DISORDERED PROTEINS; Chemistry, Multidisciplinary; EXPERIMENTAL FOLDING LANDSCAPE; MONOMERIC LACTOSE REPRESSOR; ALPHA-HELICAL PEPTIDE; Chemistry; PARALLEL BETA-SHEET
• Research Categories: Chemistry, General; Chemistry, Biochemistry

Abstract

Biomolecular assembly is a key driving force in nearly all life processes, providing structure, information storage, and communication within cells and at the whole organism level. These assembly processes rely on precise interactions between functional groups on nucleic acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and small molecules, and can be fine-tuned to span a range of time, length, and complexity scales. Recognizing the power of these motifs, researchers have sought to emulate and engineer biomolecular assemblies in the laboratory, with goals ranging from modulating cellular function to the creation of new polymeric materials. In most cases, engineering efforts are inspired or informed by understanding the structure and properties of naturally occurring assemblies, which has in turn fueled the development of predictive models that enable computational design of novel assemblies. This Review will focus on selected examples of protein assemblies, highlighting the story arc from initial discovery of an assembly, through initial engineering attempts, toward the ultimate goal of predictive design. The aim of this Review is to highlight areas where significant progress has been made, as well as to outline remaining challenges, as solving these challenges will be the key that unlocks the full power of biomolecules for advances in technology and medicine.