Designed coiled-coil peptide nanoparticles with tunable self-assembly: distinct ordered nanostructures <i>via</i> nonnatural side chain modification and electrostatic screening.

ABSTRACT: Peptide 'bundlemers' are homotetrameric coiled-coils that form discrete cylindrical nanoparticles in aqueous solution. The stability of the coiled-coil design enables selective modification of exterior residues to program interparticle interactions. We designed a single charge-type (SC) bundlemer, containing only positive ionizable groups on its exterior, with allyloxycarbonyl (alloc)-protected lysine positioned to direct hydrophobic interparticle assembly. SC bundlemers with no alloc functionalization form liquid crystalline phases through end-to-end stacking of nanoparticles into chains that are laterally repulsive due to electrostatic interactions. Incorporation of alloc groups into the SC design yielded different, ordered nanostructures depending on solution conditions. Nematic and hex

SUBMITTER: McCahill AL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12694727 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature