sb8b00250_si_001.pdf (1.06 MB)
Reversible Social Self-Sorting of Colloidal Cell-Mimics with Blue Light Switchable Proteins
journal contribution
posted on 2018-06-21, 00:00 authored by Elizaveta Chervyachkova, Seraphine V. WegnerToward the bottom-up assembly of
synthetic cells from molecular
building blocks, it is an ongoing challenge to assemble micrometer
sized compartments that host different processes into precise multicompartmental
assemblies, also called prototissues. The difficulty lies in controlling
interactions between different compartments dynamically both in space
and time, as these interactions determine how they organize with respect
to each other and how they work together. In this study, we have been
able to control the self-assembly and social self-sorting of four
different types of colloids, which we use as a model for synthetic
cells, into two separate families with visible light. For this purpose
we used two photoswitchable protein pairs (iLID/Nano and nHagHigh/pMagHigh)
that both reversibly heterodimerize upon blue light exposure and dissociate
from each other in the dark. These photoswitchable proteins provide
noninvasive, dynamic, and reversible remote control under biocompatible
conditions over the self-assembly process with unprecedented spatial
and temporal precision. In addition, each protein pair brings together
specifically two different types of colloids. The orthogonality of
the two protein pairs enables social self-sorting of a four component
mixture into two distinct families of colloidal aggregates with controlled
arrangements. These results will ultimately pave the way for the bottom-up
assembly of multicompartment synthetic prototissues of a higher complexity,
enabling us to control precisely and dynamically the organization
of different compartments in space and time.