Skip to content Skip to navigation

Engineering a virus-like particle via protein design

We have designed specialized protein molecules that organize around
carbon nanotubes into an atomistically-predefined pattern. Targeted
design of such self-organization is a powerful tool for engineering at
the nano scale. For example, we have shown that our protein/nanotube
hybrid can be used to generate a regularly-spaced array of gold
nano-particle. Shown here is an exciting new concept we are currently
pursuing. We believe that our nanotube/protein complexes can be used to
create a virus-like particle by nucleating the formation of a membrane
mimetic around itself, much like natural enveloped viruses form a lipid
membrane bilayer around their protein capsid core.

 

A virus-like particle in which designed and characterized nanotube/protein complexes nucleate a membrane mimetic bilayer.

A virus-like particle in which designed and characterized nanotube/protein complexes nucleate a membrane mimetic bilayer.