We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Material-specific binding peptides empower sustainable innovations in plant health, biocatalysis, medicine and microplastic quantification
AI summary Read the abstract
This review covers material-binding peptides, which are short protein fragments that can attach to specific materials including plastics. These peptides have promising applications in detecting and quantifying microplastics in the environment, as well as potentially accelerating plastic degradation. The technology draws on advances in protein engineering and computational design.
Material-binding peptides (MBPs) have emerged as a diverse and innovation-enabling class of peptides in applications such as plant-/human health, immobilization of catalysts, bioactive coatings, accelerated polymer degradation and analytics for micro-/nanoplastics quantification. Progress has been fuelled by recent advancements in protein engineering methodologies and advances in computational and analytical methodologies, which allow the design of, for instance, material-specific MBPs with fine-tuned binding strength for numerous demands in material science applications. A genetic or chemical conjugation of second (biological, chemical or physical property-changing) functionality to MBPs empowers the design of advanced (hybrid) materials, bioactive coatings and analytical tools. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview comprising naturally occurring MBPs and their function in nature, binding properties of short man-made MBPs (<20 amino acids) mainly obtained from phage-display libraries, and medium-sized binding peptides (20-100 amino acids) that have been reported to bind to metals, polymers or other industrially produced materials. The goal of this review is to provide an in-depth understanding of molecular interactions between materials and material-specific binding peptides, and thereby empower the use of MBPs in material science applications. Protein engineering methodologies and selected examples to tailor MBPs toward applications in agriculture with a focus on plant health, biocatalysis, medicine and environmental monitoring serve as examples of the transformative power of MBPs for various industrial applications. An emphasis will be given to MBPs' role in detecting and quantifying microplastics in high throughput, distinguishing microplastics from other environmental particles, and thereby assisting to close an analytical gap in food safety and monitoring of environmental plastic pollution. In essence, this review aims to provide an overview among researchers from diverse disciplines in respect to material-(specific) binding of MBPs, protein engineering methodologies to tailor their properties to application demands, re-engineering for material science applications using MBPs, and thereby inspire researchers to employ MBPs in their research.
More Papers Like This
Peptide-based strategies for detecting microplastics in aquatic systems: A review
AI summary Read the abstract
This review explores the emerging use of specially designed peptides that can bind to specific types of plastic for detecting microplastics in water. Researchers describe how advances in protein engineering and computational design have enabled the creation of peptides that selectively recognize different polymer surfaces. The peptide-based approach offers a promising new detection method that could complement existing techniques for monitoring microplastic pollution in aquatic environments.
Peptide Technologies for the Detection and Remediation of Micro and Nanoplastics from Molecular Mechanisms to Artificial Intelligence Guided Design
AI summary Read the abstract
This review summarizes existing research on using small proteins called peptides to detect and remove microplastics and nanoplastics. It covers how peptides bind to plastic particles, how scientists design these peptides using lab methods and artificial intelligence, and various sensor and cleanup technologies, while discussing remaining technical challenges.
AI-driven rational design of promiscuous and selective plastic-binding peptides
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers used AI-driven computational design to develop both promiscuous and selective plastic-binding peptides capable of either broadly capturing heterogeneous microplastic mixtures or specifically targeting individual polymer types, providing new tools for microplastic quantitation, capture, and degradation applications.
Plastic analysis with a plasmonic nano-gold sensor coated with plastic binding peptides.
AI summary Read the abstract
This study describes a sensor technology using gold nanoparticles coated with plastic-binding peptides to detect and identify small plastic particles in the environment. Developing rapid, accurate detection methods is a critical step toward understanding how much microplastic contamination exists in water and other environments, and this approach offers a potentially faster and more sensitive alternative to conventional identification techniques.
Ms.
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers developed polymer-specific, high-affinity binding peptides capable of selectively identifying microplastic types in mixed environmental samples, aiming to create a rapid and cost-effective alternative to conventional spectroscopic identification methods. The approach leverages peptide-surface interactions to discriminate between different plastic polymers, addressing the challenge of accurately detecting microplastics released through plastic degradation and industrial processing.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.