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Marin Ž, Lacombe C, Rostami S, Arasteh Kani A, Borgonovo A, Cserjan-Puschmann M, Mairhofer J, Striedner G, Wiltschi B. Residue-Specific Incorporation of Noncanonical Amino Acids in Auxotrophic Hosts: Quo Vadis?. Chem Rev 2025; 125:4840-4932. [PMID: 40378355 PMCID: PMC12123629 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.4c00280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2025] [Accepted: 04/17/2025] [Indexed: 05/18/2025]
Abstract
The residue-specific incorporation of noncanonical amino acids in auxotrophic hosts allows the global exchange of a canonical amino acid with its noncanonical analog. Noncanonical amino acids are not encoded by the standard genetic code, but they carry unique side chain chemistries, e.g., to perform bioorthogonal conjugation reactions or to manipulate the physicochemical properties of a protein such as folding and stability. The method was introduced nearly 70 years ago and is still in widespread use because of its simplicity and robustness. In our study, we review the trends in the field during the last two decades. We give an overview of the application of the method for artificial post-translational protein modifications and the selective functionalization and directed immobilization of proteins. We highlight the trends in the use of noncanonical amino acids for the analysis of nascent proteomes and the engineering of enzymes and biomaterials, and the progress in the biosynthesis of amino acid analogs. We also discuss the challenges for the scale-up of the technique.
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Affiliation(s)
- Žana Marin
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
- acib
- Austrian
Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Claudia Lacombe
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Simindokht Rostami
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Arshia Arasteh Kani
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Andrea Borgonovo
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
- acib
- Austrian
Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Monika Cserjan-Puschmann
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Gerald Striedner
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
| | - Birgit Wiltschi
- Department
of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Institute of Bioprocess Science
and Engineering, BOKU University, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
- acib
- Austrian
Centre of Industrial Biotechnology, Muthgasse 18, 1190Vienna, Austria
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Buri MV, Garavelli GY, Vigerelli H, de Souza MM, Maia Lobba AR, Ghidelli-Disse S, Chudzinski-Tavassi AM. cAmbly: A non-toxic cell-penetrating peptide derived from Amblyomin-X with targeted delivery to mitochondrial and cytoplasmic proteins. PLoS One 2025; 20:e0318119. [PMID: 40072951 PMCID: PMC11902296 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0318119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2025] [Indexed: 03/14/2025] Open
Abstract
The effective delivery of drugs remains a major challenge in the development of new therapeutic molecules. Several strategies have been employed to address this issue, with cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) standing out due to their ability to traverse cell membranes with minimal cytotoxicity and their relatively straightforward synthesis when conjugated with other molecules. However, while CPPs can successfully enter the cytoplasm, they often lack specificity for particular organelles, leaving target engagement to the drug itself. In this study, we present cAmbly, a novel CPP derived from the antitumoral protein Amblyomin-X. Our findings demonstrate that cAmbly efficiently internalizes into T98G cells within 30 min of incubation and preferentially colocalizes with mitochondria, exhibiting a clear affinity for mitochondrial proteins. These results suggest that cAmbly could serve as a promising delivery vehicle for mitochondria-targeted drugs, such as BCL-2 or OXPHOS modulators, which are commonly employed in cancer treatment. Furthermore, we identified the C-terminal of cAmbly as the optimal site for conjugating molecules intended for intracellular delivery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Vinicius Buri
- CENTD, Centre of Excellence in New Target Discovery, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Hugo Vigerelli
- CENTD, Centre of Excellence in New Target Discovery, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
| | | | - Aline Ramos Maia Lobba
- CENTD, Centre of Excellence in New Target Discovery, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
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Majekodunmi T, Britton D, Montclare JK. Engineered Proteins and Materials Utilizing Residue-Specific Noncanonical Amino Acid Incorporation. Chem Rev 2024; 124:9113-9135. [PMID: 39008623 PMCID: PMC11327963 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
The incorporation of noncanonical amino acids into proteins and protein-based materials has significantly expanded the repertoire of available protein structures and chemistries. Through residue-specific incorporation, protein properties can be globally modified, resulting in the creation of novel proteins and materials with diverse and tailored characteristics. In this review, we highlight recent advancements in residue-specific incorporation techniques as well as the applications of the engineered proteins and materials. Specifically, we discuss their utility in bio-orthogonal noncanonical amino acid tagging (BONCAT), fluorescent noncanonical amino acid tagging (FUNCAT), threonine-derived noncanonical amino acid tagging (THRONCAT), cross-linking, fluorination, and enzyme engineering. This review underscores the importance of noncanonical amino acid incorporation as a tool for the development of tailored protein properties to meet diverse research and industrial needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Temiloluwa Majekodunmi
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
| | - Dustin Britton
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
| | - Jin Kim Montclare
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, United States
- Department of Chemistry, New York University, New York, New York 10012, United States
- Department of Biomaterials, New York University College of Dentistry, New York, New York 10010, United States
- Department of Radiology, New York University Langone Health, New York, New York 10016, United States
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Stahl K, Graziadei A, Dau T, Brock O, Rappsilber J. Protein structure prediction with in-cell photo-crosslinking mass spectrometry and deep learning. Nat Biotechnol 2023; 41:1810-1819. [PMID: 36941363 PMCID: PMC10713450 DOI: 10.1038/s41587-023-01704-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2023]
Abstract
While AlphaFold2 can predict accurate protein structures from the primary sequence, challenges remain for proteins that undergo conformational changes or for which few homologous sequences are known. Here we introduce AlphaLink, a modified version of the AlphaFold2 algorithm that incorporates experimental distance restraint information into its network architecture. By employing sparse experimental contacts as anchor points, AlphaLink improves on the performance of AlphaFold2 in predicting challenging targets. We confirm this experimentally by using the noncanonical amino acid photo-leucine to obtain information on residue-residue contacts inside cells by crosslinking mass spectrometry. The program can predict distinct conformations of proteins on the basis of the distance restraints provided, demonstrating the value of experimental data in driving protein structure prediction. The noise-tolerant framework for integrating data in protein structure prediction presented here opens a path to accurate characterization of protein structures from in-cell data.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kolja Stahl
- Robotics and Biology Laboratory, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Andrea Graziadei
- Technische Universität Berlin, Chair of Bioanalytics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Therese Dau
- Technische Universität Berlin, Chair of Bioanalytics, Berlin, Germany
- Fritz Lipmann Institute, Leibniz Institute on Aging, Jena, Germany
| | - Oliver Brock
- Robotics and Biology Laboratory, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
- Science of Intelligence, Research Cluster of Excellence, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Juri Rappsilber
- Technische Universität Berlin, Chair of Bioanalytics, Berlin, Germany.
- Si-M/'Der Simulierte Mensch', a Science Framework of Technische Universität Berlin and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
- Wellcome Centre for Cell Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
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Chen ZA, Rappsilber J. Protein structure dynamics by crosslinking mass spectrometry. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2023; 80:102599. [PMID: 37104977 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2023.102599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
Crosslinking mass spectrometry captures protein structures in solution. The crosslinks reveal spatial proximities as distance restraints, but do not easily reveal which of these restraints derive from the same protein conformation. This superposition can be reduced by photo-crosslinking, and adding information from protein structure models, or quantitative crosslinking reveals conformation-specific crosslinks. As a consequence, crosslinking MS has proven useful already in the context of multiple dynamic protein systems. We foresee a breakthrough in the resolution and scale of studying protein dynamics when crosslinks are used to guide deep-learning-based protein modelling. Advances in crosslinking MS, such as photoactivatable crosslinking and in-situ crosslinking, will then reveal protein conformation dynamics in the cellular context, at a pseudo-atomic resolution, and plausibly in a time-resolved manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhuo Angel Chen
- Technische Universität Berlin, Chair of Bioanalytics, 10623 Berlin, Germany
| | - Juri Rappsilber
- Technische Universität Berlin, Chair of Bioanalytics, 10623 Berlin, Germany; Si-M/"Der Simulierte Mensch", a Science Framework of Technische Universität Berlin and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, 10623 Berlin, Germany; Wellcome Centre for Cell Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, UK.
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Mishra PK, Kang MG, Lee H, Kim S, Choi S, Sharma N, Park CM, Ko J, Lee C, Seo JK, Rhee HW. A chemical tool for blue light-inducible proximity photo-crosslinking in live cells. Chem Sci 2022; 13:955-966. [PMID: 35211260 PMCID: PMC8790779 DOI: 10.1039/d1sc04871f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
We developed a proximity photo-crosslinking method (Spotlight) with a 4-azido-N-ethyl-1,8-naphthalimide (AzNP) moiety that can be converted to reactive aryl nitrene species using ambient blue light-emitting diode light. Using an AzNP-conjugated HaloTag ligand (VL1), blue light-induced photo-crosslinked products of various HaloTag-conjugated proteins of interest were detected in subcellular spaces in live cells. Chemical or heat stress-induced dynamic changes in the proteome were also detected, and photo-crosslinking in the mouse brain tissue was enabled. Using Spotlight, we further identified the host interactome of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid (N) protein, which is essential for viral genome assembly. Mass analysis of the VL1-crosslinked product of N-HaloTag in HEK293T cells showed that RNA-binding proteins in stress granules were exclusively enriched in the cross-linked samples. These results tell that our method can reveal the interactome of protein of interest within a short distance in live cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pratyush Kumar Mishra
- Department of Chemistry, Seoul National University Seoul 08826 Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44191 Korea
| | - Myeong-Gyun Kang
- Department of Chemistry, Seoul National University Seoul 08826 Korea
| | - Hakbong Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44919 Korea
| | - Seungjoon Kim
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 Korea
| | - Subin Choi
- Department of Chemistry, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44191 Korea
| | - Nirmali Sharma
- Department of Chemistry, Seoul National University Seoul 08826 Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44191 Korea
| | - Cheol-Min Park
- Department of Chemistry, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44191 Korea
| | - Jaewon Ko
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) Daegu 42988 Korea
| | - Changwook Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44919 Korea
| | - Jeong Kon Seo
- UNIST Central Research Facilities (UCRF), Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) Ulsan 44919 Korea
| | - Hyun-Woo Rhee
- Department of Chemistry, Seoul National University Seoul 08826 Korea
- School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University Seoul 08826 Korea
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