Université Grenoble Alpes, BIG-LCBM, F-38000 Grenoble, France.
CNRS, BIG-LCBM, F-38000 Grenoble, France.
Nat Chem. 2017 Feb;9(2):157-163. doi: 10.1038/nchem.2616. Epub 2016 Oct 10.
Engineering bioelectronic components and set-ups that mimic natural systems is extremely challenging. Here we report the design of a protein-only redox film inspired by the architecture of bacterial electroactive biofilms. The nanowire scaffold is formed using a chimeric protein that results from the attachment of a prion domain to a rubredoxin (Rd) that acts as an electron carrier. The prion domain self-assembles into stable fibres and provides a suitable arrangement of redox metal centres in Rd to permit electron transport. This results in highly organized films, able to transport electrons over several micrometres through a network of bionanowires. We demonstrate that our bionanowires can be used as electron-transfer mediators to build a bioelectrode for the electrocatalytic oxygen reduction by laccase. This approach opens opportunities for the engineering of protein-only electron mediators (with tunable redox potentials and optimized interactions with enzymes) and applications in the field of protein-only bioelectrodes.
设计模仿自然系统的生物电子元件和装置极具挑战性。本文报告了一种受细菌电活性生物膜结构启发的仅由蛋白质组成的氧化还原膜的设计。纳米线支架是使用一种嵌合蛋白形成的，该蛋白是由连接到作为电子载体的 rubredoxin（Rd）的朊病毒结构域组成的。朊病毒结构域自组装成稳定的纤维，并为 Rd 中的氧化还原金属中心提供合适的排列，以允许电子传输。这导致了高度有序的薄膜，能够通过生物纳米线网络传输数微米的电子。我们证明，我们的生物纳米线可用作电子转移介质，用于构建漆酶电催化氧气还原的生物电极。这种方法为仅由蛋白质组成的电子介体（具有可调氧化还原电位和与酶的优化相互作用）的工程设计以及在仅由蛋白质组成的生物电极领域的应用提供了机会。
