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Wen F, Wang Y, Tu B, Cui L. Superfast Gelation of Spider Silk-Based Artificial Silk Protein. Gels 2024; 10:69. [PMID: 38247791 PMCID: PMC10815891 DOI: 10.3390/gels10010069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 01/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Spider silk proteins (spidroins) have garnered attention in biomaterials research due to their ability to self-assemble into hydrogels. However, reported spidroin hydrogels require high protein concentration and prolonged gelation time. Our study engineered an artificial spidroin that exhibits unprecedented rapid self-assembly into hydrogels at physiologically relevant conditions, achieving gelation at a low concentration of 6 mg/mL at 37 °C without external additives. Remarkably, at a 30 mg/mL concentration, our engineered protein forms hydrogels within 30 s, a feature we termed "superfast gelation". This rapid formation is modulated by ions, pH, and temperature, offering versatility in biomedical applications. The hydrogel's capacity to encapsulate proteins and support E. coli growth while inducing RFP expression provides a novel platform for drug delivery and bioengineering applications. Our findings introduce a superfast, highly adaptable, and cytocompatible hydrogel that self-assembles under mild conditions, underscoring the practical implication of rapid gelation in biomedical research and clinical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Wen
- CCZU-JITRI Joint Bio-X Lab, School of Pharmacy & School of Biological and Food Engineering, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China; (F.W.); (Y.W.)
| | - Yu Wang
- CCZU-JITRI Joint Bio-X Lab, School of Pharmacy & School of Biological and Food Engineering, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China; (F.W.); (Y.W.)
| | - Bowen Tu
- Pathogenic Biological Laboratory, Changzhou Disease Control and Prevention Centre, Changzhou Medical Centre, Nanjing Medical University, Changzhou 213000, China;
| | - Lun Cui
- CCZU-JITRI Joint Bio-X Lab, School of Pharmacy & School of Biological and Food Engineering, Changzhou University, Changzhou 213164, China; (F.W.); (Y.W.)
- Biomaterials Lab, Changzhou AiRiBio Healthcare Co., Ltd., Changzhou 213164, China
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Gaspar-Morales EA, Waterston A, Sadqi M, Diaz-Parga P, Smith AM, Gopinath A, Andresen Eguiluz RC, de Alba E. Natural and Engineered Isoforms of the Inflammasome Adaptor ASC Form Noncovalent, pH-Responsive Hydrogels. Biomacromolecules 2023; 24:5563-5577. [PMID: 37930828 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.3c00409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2023]
Abstract
The protein ASC polymerizes into intricate filament networks to assemble the inflammasome, a filamentous multiprotein complex that triggers the inflammatory response. ASC carries two Death Domains integrally involved in protein self-association for filament assembly. We have leveraged this behavior to create noncovalent, pH-responsive hydrogels of full-length, folded ASC by carefully controlling the pH as a critical factor in the polymerization process. We show that natural variants of ASC (ASC isoforms) involved in inflammasome regulation also undergo hydrogelation. To further demonstrate this general capability, we engineered proteins inspired by the ASC structure that also form hydrogels. We analyzed the structural network of the natural and engineered protein hydrogels using transmission and scanning electron microscopy and studied their viscoelastic behavior using shear rheology. Our results reveal one of the very few examples of hydrogels created by the self-assembly of globular proteins and domains in their native conformation and show that Death Domains can be used alone or as building blocks to engineer bioinspired hydrogels.
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Qi X, Wang Y, Yu H, Liu R, Leppert A, Zheng Z, Zhong X, Jin Z, Wang H, Li X, Wang X, Landreh M, A Morozova-Roche L, Johansson J, Xiong S, Iashchishyn I, Chen G. Spider Silk Protein Forms Amyloid-Like Nanofibrils through a Non-Nucleation-Dependent Polymerization Mechanism. Small 2023; 19:e2304031. [PMID: 37455347 DOI: 10.1002/smll.202304031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2023] [Revised: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Amyloid fibrils-nanoscale fibrillar aggregates with high levels of order-are pathogenic in some today incurable human diseases; however, there are also many physiologically functioning amyloids in nature. The process of amyloid formation is typically nucleation-elongation-dependent, as exemplified by the pathogenic amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) that is associated with Alzheimer's disease. Spider silk, one of the toughest biomaterials, shares characteristics with amyloid. In this study, it is shown that forming amyloid-like nanofibrils is an inherent property preserved by various spider silk proteins (spidroins). Both spidroins and Aβ capped by spidroin N- and C-terminal domains, can assemble into macroscopic spider silk-like fibers that consist of straight nanofibrils parallel to the fiber axis as observed in native spider silk. While Aβ forms amyloid nanofibrils through a nucleation-dependent pathway and exhibits strong cytotoxicity and seeding effects, spidroins spontaneously and rapidly form amyloid-like nanofibrils via a non-nucleation-dependent polymerization pathway that involves lateral packing of fibrils. Spidroin nanofibrils share amyloid-like properties but lack strong cytotoxicity and the ability to self-seed or cross-seed human amyloidogenic peptides. These results suggest that spidroins´ unique primary structures have evolved to allow functional properties of amyloid, and at the same time direct their fibrillization pathways to avoid formation of cytotoxic intermediates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingmei Qi
- The Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institutes of Biology and Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China
| | - Yu Wang
- Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14157, Sweden
- College of Wildlife and Protected Area, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China
| | - Hairui Yu
- The Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institutes of Biology and Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China
| | - Ruifang Liu
- The Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institutes of Biology and Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China
| | - Axel Leppert
- Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, 17165, Sweden
| | - Zihan Zheng
- Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14157, Sweden
- Department of Pharmacology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Shaanxi, 710061, China
| | - Xueying Zhong
- School of Engineering Sciences in Chemistry, Biotechnology and Health, Department of Biomedical Engineering and Health Systems, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Huddinge, 14152, Sweden
| | - Zhen Jin
- Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14157, Sweden
- Department of Pharmacology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Shaanxi, 710061, China
| | - Han Wang
- The Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institutes of Biology and Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China
| | - Xiaoli Li
- Department of Pharmacology, College of Pharmacy, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400016, China
| | - Xiuzhe Wang
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200233, China
| | - Michael Landreh
- Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, 17165, Sweden
| | | | - Jan Johansson
- Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14157, Sweden
| | - Sidong Xiong
- The Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Institutes of Biology and Medical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China
| | - Igor Iashchishyn
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Umeå University, Umeå, 90187, Sweden
| | - Gefei Chen
- Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, 14157, Sweden
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Parida PP, Saraswathi D, Mopidevi SM, Raran-Kurussi S. Advancing large-scale production of TEV protease through an innovative NT* tag-based fusion construct. Curr Res Struct Biol 2023; 6:100106. [PMID: 37822550 PMCID: PMC10563009 DOI: 10.1016/j.crstbi.2023.100106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 09/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Tobacco etch virus Protease (TEVp), a cysteine protease, is renowned for its remarkable specific proteolysis, making it an invaluable tool for removing fusion tags from recombinant proteins. However, TEV protease's inherent insolubility limits its broad application. Fusion constructs like an N-terminal MBP fusion, known for its improved solubility, have been employed for TEVp production to address this issue. In this study, we fused the TEVp with the N-terminal domain of the spider silk protein, specifically utilizing a charge-reversed mutant (D40K/K65D) of the N-terminal domain of major ampullate spidroin-1 protein from Euprosthenops australis, referred to as NT*. This fusion construct contains a TEVp cleavage site, enabling intracellular self-processing and the release of a His7-tagged protease. The significant increase in soluble protein expression allowed us to purify approximately 90-100 mg of TEVp from a 1-L E. coli culture, surpassing previous findings by a considerable margin. The enzyme remained stable and catalytically active even after several months of storage in a deep freezer (-80 °C).
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Affiliation(s)
- Pragyan P. Parida
- Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Hyderabad, 36/P Gopanpally Village, Ranga Reddy District, Serilingampally, Hyderabad, 500046, Telangana, India
| | - Deepa Saraswathi
- Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Hyderabad, 36/P Gopanpally Village, Ranga Reddy District, Serilingampally, Hyderabad, 500046, Telangana, India
| | - Subbarao M.V. Mopidevi
- Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Hyderabad, 36/P Gopanpally Village, Ranga Reddy District, Serilingampally, Hyderabad, 500046, Telangana, India
| | - Sreejith Raran-Kurussi
- Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Hyderabad, 36/P Gopanpally Village, Ranga Reddy District, Serilingampally, Hyderabad, 500046, Telangana, India
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