(396e) Invited: Recombinant Protein Assemblies to Enable Intracellular Delivery of Therapeutic Proteins

Proteins have high potential for a wide range of therapeutic applications. However, a number of challenges limit their use, including inability to express and purify sufficient material, retain bioactivity, localize the protein to the desired site in the body. While a protein’s folded structure is critical to its biological function, it makes proteins sensitive and difficult to produce and package. However, this structure also provides an opportunity to create materials from proteins that could improve not only their presentation in a specific application, but also the opportunity to utilize self-assembly to improve protein production and function. In this presentation I will discuss the design, fabrication, and use of self-assembling protein complexes with physical and biological properties that enable new therapeutic functions.