Institute of Chemistry, Fritz Haber Research Center, and The Harvey M. Krueger Family Center for Nanoscience & Nanotechnology, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel.
Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH), Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States.
Chem Rev. 2024 May 8;124(9):5668-5694. doi: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00752. Epub 2024 Apr 18.
Faced with desiccation stress, many organisms deploy strategies to maintain the integrity of their cellular components. Amorphous glassy media composed of small molecular solutes or protein gels present general strategies for protecting against drying. We review these strategies and the proposed molecular mechanisms to explain protein protection in a vitreous matrix under conditions of low hydration. We also describe efforts to exploit similar strategies in technological applications for protecting proteins in dry or highly desiccated states. Finally, we outline open questions and possibilities for future explorations.
面对干燥胁迫，许多生物会采取策略来维持其细胞成分的完整性。由小分子溶质或蛋白质凝胶组成的无定形玻璃状介质提供了防止干燥的一般策略。我们综述了这些策略和提出的分子机制，以解释在低水合条件下蛋白质在玻璃基质中的保护。我们还描述了在技术应用中利用类似策略来保护干燥或高度干燥状态下蛋白质的努力。最后，我们概述了未来探索的开放性问题和可能性。
