1. Pore Planning: Functional Membrane Proteins by Design HAGAN BAYLEY, Department of Medical Biochemistry & Genetics, The Texas A&M University, System Health Science Center, College Station, Texas 77843-1114
My laboratory has used genetic engineering and targeted chemical modification to produce functionalized pore-forming proteins. The primary target of our studies has been staphylococcal α-hemolysin, which is a 293 amino acid, water-soluble polypeptide that self assembles in lipid bilayers to form heptameric transmembrane pores. We have made α-hemolysins in which pore activity can be triggered or switched on and off by biochemical, chemical, or physical stimuli, including the action of enzymes, noncovalent and covalent modification, and irradiation with near UV light. Recently, the use of noncovalent adapters to modify the properties of the α-hemolysin pore has proved very fruitful. Adapters such as cyclodextrins have been used to change the pore’s conductance, ion selectivity, and susceptibility...
