Protein disorder–order interplay to guide the growth of hierarchical 
mineralized structures

Elsharkawy, Sherif; Al-Jawad, Maisoon; Pantano, Maria F.; Tejeda-Montes, Esther; Mehta, Khushbu; Jamal, Hasan; Agarwal, Shweta; Shuturminska, Kseniya; Rice, Alistair; Tarakina, Nadezda V.; Wilson, Rory M.; Bushby, Andy J.; Alonso, Matilde; Rodriguez-Cabello, Jose C.; Barbieri, Ettore; del Río Hernández, Armando; Stevens, Molly M.; Pugno, Nicola M.; Anderson, Paul; Mata, Alvaro

doi:10.1038/s41467-018-04319-0

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Protein disorder–order interplay to guide the growth of hierarchical mineralized structures

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Elsharkawy, S., Al-Jawad, M., Pantano, M. F., Tejeda-Montes, E., Mehta, K., Jamal, H., et al. (2018). Protein disorder–order interplay to guide the growth of hierarchical mineralized structures. Nature Communications, 9(1): 2145. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-04319-0.

Cite as: https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-0001-763E-6

Abstract

A major goal in materials science is to develop bioinspired functional materials based on the precise control of molecular building blocks across length scales. Here we report a protein-mediated mineralization process that takes advantage of disorder–order interplay using elastin-like recombinamers to program organic–inorganic interactions into hierarchically ordered mineralized structures. The materials comprise elongated apatite nanocrystals that are aligned and organized into microscopic prisms, which grow together into spherulite-like structures hundreds of micrometers in diameter that come together to fill macroscopic areas. The structures can be grown over large uneven surfaces and native tissues as acid-resistant membranes or coatings with tuneable hierarchy, stiffness, and hardness. Our study represents a potential strategy for complex materials design that may open opportunities for hard tissue repair and provide insights into the role of molecular disorder in human physiology and pathology.