Department of Energy, Environmental & Chemical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Drive, Saint Louis, MI 63130, USA.
Institute of Materials Science and Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Drive, Saint Louis, MI 63130, USA.
Molecules. 2023 Jun 25;28(13):4988. doi: 10.3390/molecules28134988.
Hydrogels made from proteins are attractive materials for diverse medical applications, as they are biocompatible, biodegradable, and amenable to chemical and biological modifications. Recent advances in protein engineering, synthetic biology, and material science have enabled the fine-tuning of protein sequences, hydrogel structures, and hydrogel mechanical properties, allowing for a broad range of biomedical applications using protein hydrogels. This article reviews recent progresses on protein hydrogels with special focus on those made of microbially produced proteins. We discuss different hydrogel formation strategies and their associated hydrogel properties. We also review various biomedical applications, categorized by the origin of protein sequences. Lastly, current challenges and future opportunities in engineering protein-based hydrogels are discussed. We hope this review will inspire new ideas in material innovation, leading to advanced protein hydrogels with desirable properties for a wide range of biomedical applications.
由蛋白质制成的水凝胶是具有吸引力的医学应用材料，因为它们具有生物相容性、可生物降解性，并且易于进行化学和生物学修饰。蛋白质工程、合成生物学和材料科学的最新进展使得能够对蛋白质序列、水凝胶结构和水凝胶机械性能进行精细调整，从而可以使用蛋白质水凝胶进行广泛的生物医学应用。本文综述了近年来在蛋白质水凝胶方面的最新进展，特别关注由微生物产生的蛋白质制成的水凝胶。我们讨论了不同的水凝胶形成策略及其相关的水凝胶特性。我们还按蛋白质序列的来源对各种生物医学应用进行了综述。最后，讨论了工程蛋白质基水凝胶的当前挑战和未来机遇。我们希望这篇综述将激发材料创新的新想法，从而为广泛的生物医学应用带来具有理想性能的先进蛋白质水凝胶。
