Protein-aided Mineralization of Inorganic Nanostructures
Brandon L. Coyle, Weibin Zhou and François Baneyx
from: Bionanotechnology: Biological Self-assembly and its Applications (Edited by: Bernd H. A. Rehm). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2013)
Abstract
Designer proteins combine the adhesive or synthesizing properties of solid binding peptides (SBPs) selected by combinatorial techniques with the desirable characteristics of a host scaffold. Like natural biomineralizing proteins, these chimeric constructs are powerful tools to control the nucleation, growth, morphogenesis and crystallography of inorganic phases. They also hold great potential for the assembly of hybrid structures in which inorganic, biological and synthetic components are organized with the high degree of precision needed to take advantage of the unique properties of matter at the nanoscale. After briefly discussing common approaches for identifying SBPs, we discuss the mechanisms by which they modulate materialization, which variables influence the process, and review recent progress in the use of designer proteins to fabricate complex architectures read more ...
