A1 Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä lehdessä
Metastable Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation and Aging Lead to Strong Processing Path Dependence in Mini-Spidroin Solutions
Tekijät: Fedorov, Dmitrii; Sammalisto, Fred-Eric; Harmat, Adam L.; Ahlberg, Martin; Koskela, Salla; Haataja, Mikko P.; Scacchi, Alberto; Sammalkorpi, Maria; Linder, Markus B.
Kustantaja: WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH
Kustannuspaikka: WEINHEIM
Julkaisuvuosi: 2024
Journal: Advanced Functional Materials
Lehden akronyymi: ADV FUNCT MATER
Artikkelin numero: 2410421
Sivujen määrä: 11
ISSN: 1616-301X
eISSN: 1616-3028
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202410421
Verkko-osoite: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adfm.202410421
Rinnakkaistallenteen osoite: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/458314044
Recombinant silk proteins provide a route toward sustainable and biocompatible materials. For making such materials, the assembly process from dilute protein into a functional material is central. The assembly mechanism in engineered materials is by necessity different from the natural ones-this poses challenges but also opens opportunities for scaling up and for developing novel properties. The phase behavior of a mini-spidroin, NT-2Rep-CT is studied, which is a widely studied variant of recombinant silk. NT-2Rep-CT can be triggered to assemble by lowering the pH, but even at high pH-considered as storage conditions-it can be in various states, such as forming condensates, clusters, gels, and soluble protein. It is shown how its assembly phases evolve through both metastable and dynamically arrested states. The observed behavior of silk protein solutions is highly complex, and elements thereof from phase diagrams associated with polymers, colloidal systems, and globular proteins are found. Based on the characterization of cluster formation and structural intermediates, a minimalist phase diagram is proposed for NT-2Rep-CT and argues that the understanding and insight into silk assembly via its phase behavior, and especially the arrested states, is central for designing recombinant silk proteins and their processing for materials applications.
Ladattava julkaisu This is an electronic reprint of the original article. |
Julkaisussa olevat rahoitustiedot:
This work was supported by the Research Council of Finland under project numbers 346111 (M.S.), 364205 (M.S.), 346105 (M.L.), and 364199 (M.L.) through its Centres of Excellence Programme (2022-2029, LIBER), Novo Nordisk Foundation under project no. NNF22OC0074060 (M.S.), NNF22OC0079084 (A.S.), and NNF20OC0061306 (M.L.). The Bioeconomy Infrastructure at Aalto University is acknowledged for providing facilities.