Charge Transport across Proteins inside Proteins: Tunneling across Encapsulin Protein Cages and the Effect of Cargo Proteins.

ABSTRACT: Charge transport across proteins can be surprisingly efficient over long distances-so-called long-range tunneling-but it is still unclear as to why and under which conditions (e.g., presence of co-factors, type of cargo) the long-range tunneling regime can be accessed. This paper describes molecular tunneling junctions based on an encapsulin (Enc), which is a large protein cage with a diameter of 24 nm that can be loaded with various types of (small) proteins, also referred to as "cargo". We demonstrate with dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy that Enc, with and without cargo, can be made stable in solution and immobilized on metal electrodes without aggregation. We investigated the electronic properties of Enc in EGaIn-based tunnel junct

SUBMITTER: Zinelli R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9855946 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature