Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to ordered protein lattices having a regular structure repeating in two- or three-dimensions. The invention also relates to methods for producing such ordered protein lattices. The protein lattices are nanostructures which have many potential uses to which the invention also relates.

Background to the Invention

The self assembly of supramolecular structures that are ordered on the nanometre scale is a key objective in nanotechnology. DNA and peptide nanotechnologies have produced various two- or three-dimensional structures, but protein molecules have been under exploited in this area of research.

It has been shown that genetic fusion of subunits from protein assemblies that have matching rotational symmetry generates species that can self-assemble in to well-ordered, pre-determined one-, two- and three-dimensional arrays that are stabilised by extensive intermolecular interactions. The supramolecular structures produced in this way are distinguished from protein crystals produced using conventional methods and are described in Sinclair et al. (2011) Nature Nanotechnology 6:558:562.

Supramolecular structures may be generated by the genetic fusion of peptide chains that derive from multi-subunit protein assemblies that have rotational symmetry axes of equal order. Binary structures are formed from discrete entities, termed "components". A binary structure comprises a first component formed by fusing a peptide chain from a homologous protein assembly (multi-subunit protein) to a peptide chain from a

heterologous protein assembly (comprising two or more types of subunit). The second component of the binary structure comprises the second subunit from the heterologous protein assembly. When these complementary components are mixed, they self-assemble to form a supramolecular structure.

The components derived from multi-subunit protein assemblies naturally assemble to form regular lattices as a result of their neighbouring components being connected by two or more symmetrically equivalent interactions. As a consequence of this, the components are compelled to align along their common symmetry axis, imposing a fixed relative disposition of neighbouring subunits. Details of the required symmetries are disclosed in Sinclair et al, WO 2004/033487, and WO 2008/145951.

Sinclair et al. describe one-dimensional and two-dimensional protein lattices and disclose that the solid-phase materials produced using their preliminary designs for self- assembling binary three-dimensional lattices lack sufficient long-range order to permit study by X-ray diffraction. Therefore, there remains a need to develop methods to improve lattice order and facilitate the growth of larger crystals.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect, the invention provides a method for producing an ordered protein lattice, the method comprising: (a) providing a first component comprising a subunit of a homooligomeric protein assembly fused to a first subunit of a

heterooligomeric protein assembly, and a second component comprising a second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly, wherein the homooligomeric protein assembly and the heterooligomeric protein assembly are each symmetrical in two- or three- dimensions and share a rotational symmetry axis of the same order; (b) mixing said first component and said second component to produce a mixture; and (cl) (i) heating the mixture to a temperature about 2°C to about 10°C below the visible dissociation

temperature; (ii) cooling the mixture by about 10°C to about 20°C; and (iii) repeating steps (i) and (ii) at least 10 times; or (c2) (i) heating the mixture to a temperature about 2°C to about 30°C below the visible dissociation temperature; and (ii) holding the mixture at a temperature about 2°C to about 30°C below the melt temperature, thereby producing an ordered protein lattice.

In further aspects, the invention provides:

an ordered protein lattice comprising: (i) a first component comprising a subunit of a thermostable homooligomeric protein assembly fused to a first subunit of a heterooligomeric protein assembly; and (ii) a second component comprising a second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly, wherein the homooligomeric assembly and the heterooligomeric assembly are each symmetrical in two or three dimensions and share a rotational symmetry axis of the same order; an ordered protein lattice comprising: (i) a first component comprising a subunit of dodecameric acetohydroxy acid isomeroreductase (AHIR) fused to a first subunit of a heterooligomeric protein assembly; and (ii) a second component comprising a second subunit of the heterooligomeric assembly, wherein the second homooligomeric assembly is symmetrical in two or three dimensions and shares a rotational symmetry axis of the same order as a rotational symmetry axis of the AHIR.

a polypeptide comprising a first component of an ordered protein lattice according to the invention;

a polynucleotide encoding a polypeptide according to the invention; an expression vector comprising a polynucleotide according to the invention; a host cell comprising an expression vector according to the invention; and use of an ordered protein lattice of the invention in an method of biosensing or molecular imaging.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 is a picture of a crystal lattice in which the first component is AHIR fused to a Streptag peptide and the second component is Streptavidin.

Figure 2 shows details of the symmetric interaction between AHIR/Streptag and Streptavidin. The Streptag on the centre left of the picture is shown in dark shading. The symmetrical Streptag on the centre right is depicted in a lighter colour. AHIR, is shown at the top of the picture. Streptavidin is shown at the bottom.

Brief Description of the Sequence Listing

SEQ ID NO: 1 is the amino acid sequence of an example of a component comprising a subunit of acetohydroxy acid isomeroreductase (AHIR) from Thermus thermophilus fused to a Streptag sequence. The first four and last two amino acids are vector derived. Residues 5 to 144 are residues 1 to 140 of AHIR. The Streptag sequence is at positions 149-157. Residues 162 to 344 are residues 143 to 325 of AHIR. Linker residues are present at positions 145-148 and 158-161.

SEQ ID NOs: 2 to 7 are further examples of components comprising a subunit of AHIR from Thermus thermophilus fused to a Streptag sequence. SEQ ID NO: 8 is the sequence of the expression plasmid used to produce the exemplary component shown in SEQ ID NO: 1.

SEQ ID NO: 9 is the amino acid sequence of the standard Streptag II sequence.

SEQ ID NOs: 10 to 12 are amino acid sequences of examples of variant Streptag sequences.

SEQ ID NO: 13 is a consensus Streptag sequence.

SEQ ID NOs: 14 to 20 are examples of linker sequences which have four or more amino acids

SEQ ID NO: 21 is the amino acid sequence of core Streptavidin.

Detailed Description of the Invention

The invention provides a method for producing an ordered protein lattice. The ordered protein lattice comprises two components. The first component comprises a subunit of a homooligomeric protein assembly fused to a first subunit of a

heterooligomeric protein assembly. The second component comprises a second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly. The heterooligomeric protein assembly and the homooligomeric protein assembly are each symmetrical in two- or three-dimensions and share a rotational symmetry axis of the same order. In the first component, the second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly may be fused to the subunit of the homooligomeric protein assembly close to the shared rotational symmetry axis.

The first and second components naturally assemble to form regular lattices as a result of neighbouring components being connected by two or more symmetrically equivalent interactions. As a consequence of this, components are compelled to align along their common symmetry axis, imposing a fixed relative disposition of neighbouring subunit s.

Combinations of homologous and heterologous protein assemblies having compatible symmetries may be selected in accordance with the teachings of WO

2004/033487 and WO 2008/145951.

The subunit of the homologous protein assembly may be a naturally occurring sequence. Some modifications, such as deletion, substitution or addition of one or more, such as from about 2 to 300, 3 to 200, 5 to 100, 10 to 50, 12 to 30, or 15 to 20 amino acids, may be made to the subunit, provided that the subunit retains the ability to assemble into a homologous protein assembly. In one embodiment, an entire protein, or domain of a protein, other than the subunit of the heterologous protein assembly may be fused to the subunit of the homologous protein assembly. The deletions, substitutions and/or additions may be made at any site within the subunit, for example at the N- or C-terminus or at the site of insertion of the first subunit of the heterologous protein assembly. The subunit may be truncated at the N- and/or C-terminus and/or contain an internal deletion. The deleted amino acids are typically at the site of insertion of the first subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly, but modifications may also be made at other sites.

The homooligomeric assembly is advantageously a thermostable assembly. A thermostable homooligomeric protein is resistant to irreversible changes in its protein structure when heat is applied. The thermostable protein assembly is typically stable at temperatures above 50°C, such as temperatures 55°C, 60°C, 65°C, 70°C, 75°C, 80°C or more.

Thermostable homooligomeric proteins are present in thermophilic organisms. Accordingly, the first component may comprise a subunit of a homooligomeric protein from a thermophilic organism such as Thermus thermophilics, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Azotobacter vinelandii, Sacchrophagus degradans, Teredinibacter turner ae, Cellvibrio japonicas, Alcanivorax dieselolei, Thiothrix nivea, Meiothermus silvanus, Nitrococcus mobilis, Acidithiobacillus ferroxidans, Alkalilimnicola ehrlichei or Pelobacter propionicus. Homooligomeric proteins in thermophilic organisms typically have homologues in other organisms that have only slight differences in the protein structure, such as the presence of extra hydrogen bonds in the thermostable protein. Therefore, proteins from other organisms may be used to derive the subunit of a homooligomeric protein assembly present in the first component. This will affect the temperature to which the component may be heated in the method of the invention.

One example of a homooligomeric protein assembly that may be used to derive the first component of the ordered protein lattice is acetohydroxy acid isomeroreductase (AHTR). AHIR is an enzyme involved in the synthesis of branch-chain amino acids. It is present in bacteria, fungi and plants, but not in animals. Different organisms have been shown to express AHIRs that assemble to one of two oligomeric forms: a dimer (class II, for example in spinach); or a dodecamer (class I, for example in Pseudomonas

aeruginosa). For the purposes of the present invention, symmetry considerations mean that only AHIRs that assemble to a dodecameric form can be used. Structures of AHIR dodecamers that have been determined indicate that they are very similar in the way that they fold. Therefore, any dodecameric AHIR could be used to produce an ordered protein lattice of the invention, that may be produced using a method of the invention.

The first subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly may be fused internally within the AHIR sequence, typically at a site between residues 120 and 144 of AHIR using the numbering of AHIR from Thermus thermophilics, or the corresponding residues of AHIR from other organisms. Additional linker residues may be included at one or both ends of the inserted sequence of the first subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly.

The heterooligomeric protein assembly typically comprises two subunits. The assembly of the heterooligomeric protein occurs only when both subunits are present. The first subunit, which is fused to the subunit of the homooligomeric protein assembly in the first component, is typically a peptide. The second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly that is present in the second component is typically a longer protein.

The peptide from the heterooligomeric assembly that is present in the first component may be, for example, from about 6 to about 20 amino acids in length, such as about 7 to 15 or 8 to 10 amino acids. The peptide sequence may be a naturally occurring sequence or may be a non-naturally occurring sequence. The peptide may contain a deletion, substitution and/or addition of one or more, such as 2 to 5, for example, 3 or 4 amino acids, provided that the peptide retains the ability to assemble into a

heterooligomeric protein assembly together with the second subunit present in the second component.

The second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly may be a naturally occurring or non-naturally occurring sequence. Some modifications, such as deletion, substitution and/or addition of one or more, such as from about 2 to 300, 3 to 200, 5 to 100, 10 to 50, 12 to 30 or 15 to 20 amino acids, may be made to the subunit, provided that the subunit retains the ability to assemble into a heterooligomeric assembly together with the first subunit present in the first component. In one embodiment, an entire protein, or domain of a protein, other than the subunit of the heterologous protein assembly may be fused to the subunit of the heterologous protein assembly. The deletions, substitutions and/or additions may be made at any site within the second subunit, for example at the N- or C-terminus or at a site within the second subunit of the heterologous protein assembly. Typically the subunit may be truncated at the N- and/or C-terminus.

A preferred heterooligomeric protein assembly comprises Streptag as the first subunit and Streptavidin as the second subunit. Typically, the Streptag is Streptag II. Streptag II is a peptide containing the motif "HPQ-" that has been found in vitro to bind to Streptavidin within the traditional biotin pocket. The standard Streptag II sequence is "WSHPQSEK". This sequence may be varied by addition, deletion or substitution of one or more, such as 2, 3, 4 or 5 of the amino acids, provided that the core "HPQ" motif is maintained. The variant sequence is typically from 8 to 11 amino acids, such as 9 or 10 amino acids, in length. For example, the motif "SHPQ" may be maintained and one, two, three or all of the other positions may be altered and/or an additional amino acid added. The "W" residue may, for example, be substituted by a "G", the "S" after the "Q" with an "F" and/or the "K" with a "G". A "P", "N" or "G" residue may be added at the N- terminus. Any combinations of these mutations may be made. A consensus Streptag sequence is shown in SEQ ID NO: 13. Particular examples of variant sequences are: NWSHPQFEK, PWSHPQFEK, and GGSHPQFEG.

Streptavidin is a naturally occurring tetrameric assembly with an extremely strong affinity for its biotin partner. Truncation of the full length sequence leaves Streptavidin functionally intact. The commonly truncated form of Streptavidin termed "core

Streptavidin" is typically used. However, any Streptavidin variant with similar binding specificity and ability to form a tetrameric assembly may be used. The Streptavidin may comprise or consist of the sequence shown in SEQ ID NO: 21, or may comprise or consist of a sequence having at least 70%, such as at least 80%, at least 90% or at least 95% identity with SEQ ID NO: 21. Any mutations may be made, for example as detailed above, provided that the first component retains the ability to assemble into a tetrameric Streptavidin/Streptag assembly together with Streptavidin.

In the first component, the first subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly is fused to the subunit of the homooligomeric protein assembly either directly or using linker residues at one or both ends of the first subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly. A large number of linkers of different character and length have been used successfully. In one embodiment, the linkers are typically of between 1 and 10, preferably 2 and 5, such as 3 or 4, amino acids in length. The linkers may, for example, be composed of one or more of the following amino acids: lysine, serine, arginine, proline, glycine and alanine.

Examples of suitable linkers include, but are not limited to, the following: GGGS, PGGS, PGGG, RPPPPP, RPPPP, VGG, RPPG, PPPP, RPPG, PPPPPPPPP, RPPG, GG and GGG.

Appropriate linking groups may be designed using conventional modelling techniques. The linker is typically sufficiently flexible to allow the subunits to assemble into their respective protein assembly, but also sufficiently rigid so that the first and second components are compelled to align along their common symmetry axis in order to produce a regular structure within the protein lattice.

The first component and/or the second component may be modified in order to allow the incorporation of further proteins. Additional proteins or peptides may be attached to the first component and/or the second component. For example, a protein or peptide may be directly fused to the N-terminus or to the C-terminus of the subunit of the homooligomeric protein, or to the N-terminus or C-terminus of the second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein. A protein or peptide may also be fused between the subunit of the homologous protein assembly and the first subunit of the heterologous protein assembly in the first component. A portion of the sequence of the subunit of the homologous protein may be deleted to encompass the additional protein or peptide. The additional protein or peptide may be adjacent to the linker.

The first component and second component are typically expressed and purified independently using standard biochemical methods. The purified components are then mixed, typically in an aqueous solution. The solution typically has a pH between 6.5 and 9.0, preferably from 6.6 to 8.0, and an NaCl concentration of from 0 to 500 nM, preferably of from 0 to 150 mM. The aqueous solution may be phosphate buffered saline (PBS). Other suitable solutions include Tris, Bis Tris, Bis Tris Propane, MES, MOPS and HEPES.

Formation of an ordered lattice may be achieved at different ratios of the two components. Typically, the components are mixed at a ratio of 8 first components to 1 second component through to 1 first component to 8 second components, such as from 2 first components to 1 second component through to 1 first component to 4 second components. Ratios of excess second component are preferred. One example of a preferred ratio is 1 first component to 4 second components. This ratio is particularly advantageous where the homooligomeric protein assembly is a dodecamer and the heterooligomeric protein assembly is a tetramer. It is preferred that the protein concentration in the mixture of first and second components is between about 1 and about 100 mg/ml, such as between about 5 and about 50 mg/ml, for example between about 10 and about 30 mg/ml.

When the two components are mixed at appropriate ratios and concentrations, precipitates are formed. These precipitates may be "dissolved" by heating. The temperature at which the precipitates disappear is referred to herein as the "visible dissociation temperature" or the "melt temperature".

The visible dissociation temperature will depend on the exact proteins used to prepare the first and second component. It will also be affected by the ratio at which the subunits are mixed.

In a method of the invention, the mixture of the two components is heated to the visible dissociation temperature, or to a temperature slightly below this temperature, the mixture may be heated to about 1°C to 10°C below the visible dissociation temperature, such as between about 2°C to 8°C, 2°C to 6°C or 3°C to 5°C below the visible dissociation temperature. The mixture may be heated to a temperature that is more than 10°C below the visible dissociation temperature, such as to a temperature that is 12°C, 15°C, 20°C or 30°C below the visible dissociation temperature.

Formation of an ordered protein lattice may then be promoted in one of two ways. The method of the invention comprises heating the mixture to within about 20°C of the visible dissociation temperature; and then either repeatedly cooling the mixture by about 10°C and reheating the mixture to within about 20°C of the visible dissociation

temperature, or heating the mixture to within about 20°C or 30°C holding the temperature of the mixture within about 20°C or 30°C of the visible dissociation temperature for an extended period, thereby producing an ordered protein lattice.

Thus, in one method, the temperature of the mixture is held constant at the elevated temperature. For example, the mixture is held at a temperature from about 2°C to about 30°C, such as at a temperature of from about 5°C to about 15°C or about 6°C to about 10°C below the visible dissociation temperature. The elevated temperature is typically in the range of from about 20°C (room temperature) to about 80°C, such as from about 30°C to about 70°C, about 40°C to about 65°C, about 45°C to about 60°C, or about 50°C to about 55°C. The temperature may be maintained at this elevated level for an extended period. This period may be from 1 hour to about 3 months, such as from about 2 hours to 2 months, 24 hours to 1 month or 2 weeks to 3 weeks. Generally the period for which the temperature is held constant is longer for lower temperatures. For example lattice formation occurs at room temperature but the lattice grows at a slower rate than when a higher temperature is used.

For protein lattices composed of AHIR and Streptavidin, cubic lattices with a diameter of more than ΙΟΟμιη have been observed in less than 2 hours at a constant temperature of 55°C. Over a period of 24 hours, larger crystals have been produced.

The temperature may be held constant by any suitable means, for example in an incubator, heating block or thermocycler.

A second, effective method of promoting formation of an ordered protein lattice is thermocycling. Typically, this involves heating the mixture, for example to about 2°C to 6°C below the visible dissociation temperature and then lowering the temperature of the mixture before reheating the mixture to between 2°C and 6°C below the visible

dissociation temperature then relowering the temperature and repeating this cycle. The temperature to which the mixture is lowered during this cycle is typically about 10°C below the temperature to which the mixture is heated, i.e. to a temperature of about 12°C to 16°C below visible dissociation temperature. The difference between the highest temperature and the lowest temperature in the thermocycle may be more or less than 10°C. For example, it could be 6°C, 8°C, 12°C, 15°C, or 20°C. The cycle is typically repeated from about 10 to more than 1000 times, for example, 100, 500, 2000 or more times. The length of the cycle is typically from 2 seconds to 10 minutes, such as 30 seconds to 5 minutes or 1 minute to 2 minutes. The temperature of the mixture may be held at the high temperature and/or at the low temperature for a period of from about 1 second to about 5 minutes, for example from about 5 seconds to about 2 minutes, about 15 seconds to about 1 minute or about 30 seconds to about 45 seconds.

Typically, the cycle is repeated many times over a period of several hours, for example from 1 hour to 72 hours, such as from 2 hours to 48 hours, 12 hours to 24 hours or 16 hours to 20 hours.

In one embodiment, typically using AHIR and Streptavidin, the thermocycling involves oscillating for about 16 to about 72 hours over a temperature range of about 52°C to 62°C with a total period of approximately 1 minute, with 30 seconds at each of the high and low temperatures. Thermocycling is typically carried out using a thermocycler.

The temperature at which protein lattices are formed may be increased or decreased by including additives in the mixture comprising the first and second components.

Suitable additives which cause a reduction in temperature include glycerol, sucrose, salts and polyethylene glycols. Any other additives which affect the interaction between the first and second subunits of the heterooligomeric protein and hence between the first and second components, can cause a decrease or increase in the visible dissociation

temperature. This will alter the temperature at which the ordered protein lattices are formed.

The present invention provides an ordered protein lattice comprising: (i) a first component comprising a subunit of a thermostable homooligomeric protein assembly fused to a first subunit of a heterooligomeric protein assembly, wherein the homooligomeric assembly and the heterooligomeric assembly are each symmetrical in two or three dimensions and share a rotational symmetry axis of the same order; and (ii) a second component comprising a second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly.

The first and second components are typically assembled along the shared rotational symmetry axis with the subunits of the homologous protein assembly being assembled and the first and second subunits of the heterooligomeric protein assembly being assembled.

The invention also provides an ordered protein lattice comprising: (i) a first component comprising a subunit of a dodecameric AHIR fused to a first subunit of a heterooligomeric protein assembly, wherein the heterooligomeric assembly is symmetrical in two- or three-dimensions and shares a rotational symmetry axis with dodecameric AHIR; and (ii) a second component comprising a second subunit of the heterooligomeric protein assembly. Preferably, the heterooligomeric protein assembly is tetrameric. More preferably, the first subunit of the heterologous protein assembly is a peptide that binds to the biotin pocket in Streptavidin and the second subunit of the heterologous protein assembly is Streptavidin. The AHIR may be thermostable or thermosensitive.

The invention also provides a polypeptide which is a first component of the protein lattices of the invention. The polypeptide of the invention typically comprises the sequence of a subunit of a thermostable homooligomeric protein or AHIR fused to a first component of a heterooligomeric protein. The subunits of the thermostable homooligomeric protein or AHIR may comprise a naturally occurring sequence or a modified sequence as described above. The thermostable protein may be derived from a thermophilic organism as described above. The first component of a heterooligomeric protein is typically a peptide as described above.

In one particular embodiment, the polypeptide comprises the sequence shown in

SEQ ID NO: 1. The polypeptide may comprise a sequence which is a variant of SEQ ID NO: 1. The variant may have at least 70%, such as at least 80%, at least 90% or at least 95% identity with SEQ ID NO: 1, or with any of SEQ ID NOs: 2 to 8. Any mutations may be made provided that the first component retains the ability to assemble into dodecameric AHIR and into a tetrameric Streptavidin/Streptag assembly together with Streptavidin. Such variants include corresponding parts of the AHIR subunit sequence from other organisms as described above, variant Streptag sequences that comprise the HPQ motif, and/or different linker residues as described above. Examples of variant sequences include: variants in which residues 132 to 140 of the AHIR sequence are deleted in addition to the deletion of residues 141 and 142 in SEQ ID NO: 1; variants in which the linker GGGS is replaced with the linker PGGG, RPPPPP, RPPPP or VGG; variants in which the Streptag sequence is PWSHPQFEK or GGSHPQFEG; and/or variants in which the linker RPPG is replaced with the linker PPPP, RPPG, PPPPPPPPP, GG or GGG. More specific examples that the inventors have used to produce crystal lattices are shown in SEQ ID NOs: 2 to 7 and detailed in Table 1.

Table 1: Examples of some successfully tested AHIR, Streptag and Linker sequences

The invention also provides a polynucleotide which encodes the polypeptide of the invention. The polynucleotide may also comprise an additional sequence beyond the 5' and/or 3' ends of the coding sequence. The polynucleotide may be RNA or DNA, including genomic DNA, synthetic DNA or cDNA. The polynucleotide may be single or double stranded. A typical polynucleotide of the invention is shown in SEQ ID NO: 8.

The polynucleotide may comprise synthetic or modified nucleotides, such as methylphosphonate and phosphorothioate backbones or the addition of acridine or polylysine chains at the 3' and/or 5' ends of the molecule. Such polynucleotides may be produced and used using standard techniques.

The invention also provides expression vectors which comprise a polynucleotide of the invention and which are capable of expressing a first component of the invention. Such vectors may also comprise appropriate initiators, promoters, enhancers and other elements, such as for example polyadenylation signals which may be necessary, and which are positioned in the correct orientation, in order to allow for protein expression.

Thus the coding sequence in the vector is operably linked to such elements so that they provide for expression of the coding sequence (typically in a cell). The term

"operably linked" refers to a juxtaposition wherein the components described are in a relationship permitting them to function in their intended manner.

The vector may be for example, plasmid, virus or phage vector. Typically the vector has an origin of replication. The vector may comprise one or more selectable marker genes, for example an ampicillin resistance gene in the case of a bacterial plasmid or a resistance gene for a fungal vector.

Promoters and other expression regulation signals may be selected to be compatible with the host cell for which expression is designed. For example, yeast promoters include S. cerevisiae GAL4 and ADH promoters, S. pombe nmt\ and adh promoter. Mammalian promoters include the metallothionein promoter which can be induced in response to heavy metals such as cadmium. Viral promoters such as the SV40 large T antigen promoter or adenovirus promoters may also be used.

Mammalian promoters, such as β-actin promoters, may be used. Tissue-specific promoters are especially preferred. Viral promoters may also be used, for example the Moloney murine leukaemia virus long terminal repeat (MMLV LTR), the rous sarcoma virus (RSV) LTR promoter, the SV40 promoter, the human cytomegalovirus (CMV) IE promoter, adenovirus, HSV promoters (such as the HSV IE promoters), or HPV promoters, particularly the HPV upstream regulatory region (URR). Another method that can be used for the expression of the protein components is cell-free expression, for example bacterial, yeast or mammalian.

The invention also includes cells that have been modified to express the

components of the invention. Such cells include transient, or preferably stable higher eukaryotic cell lines, such as mammalian cells or insect cells, using for example a baculovirus expression system, lower eukaryotic cells, such as yeast or prokaryotic cells such as bacterial cells. Particular examples of cells which may be modified by insertion of vectors encoding for a polypeptide according to the invention include mammalian

HEK293T, CHO, HeLa and COS cells. Preferably the cell line selected will be one which is not only stable, but also allows for mature glycosylation of a polypeptide. Expression may be achieved in transformed oocytes.

The polypeptides, polynucleotides, vectors or cells of the invention may be present in a substantially isolated form. They may also be in a substantially purified form, in which case they will generally comprise at least 90%, e.g. at least 95%, 98% or 99%, of the proteins, polynucleotides, cells or dry mass of the preparation.

The components of the protein lattices may be prepared using vectors and host cells using standard techniques.

Protein lattices in accordance with the present invention have numerous different uses. The ordered protein lattices of the invention find utility where patterning on the nanometre scale is advantageous, especially where a regular array of guest molecules is required. In general, such uses will take advantage of the regular repeating structure and the pores within the lattice. Lattices in accordance with the present invention may be designed to have pores with dimensions expected to be of the order of nanometres to tens of nanometres. Lattices may be designed with an appropriate pore size for a desired use.

The highly defined, unusually sized and finely controlled pore sizes of the protein lattices together with the stability of their lattice structures make them ideal for

applications requiring microporous materials with pore sizes in the range just mentioned. As one example, the lattices are expected to be useful as a filter element or molecular sieve for filtration or separation processes. In this use, the pore sizes achievable and the ability to design a pore's size would be particularly advantageous.

In another class of use, macromolecular entities would be attached to the protein lattice. Such attachment may be achieved using conventional techniques. The macromolecular entities may be any entities of an appropriate size, for example proteins, polynucleotides or non-biological entities. As such, the protein lattices are expected to be useful as biological matrices for carrying macromolecular entities, for example for use in drug delivery, or for crystallizing macromolecular entities.

Attachment of the macromolecular entities to the protein lattice may be performed by "tagging" either or both of the protein components or the macromolecular entities of interest. In this context, tagging is the covalent addition to either or both of the protein components or the target macromolecular entities, of a structure known as a tag which forms strong interactions with a target structure. The target structure may be a further tag attached to one of the components of the lattice or target macromolecular entity, or may be a part of the component or target macromolecular entity. In the case of the protein component, or a macromolecular entity which is a protein, this may be achieved by the expression of a genetically modified version of the protein to carry an additional sequence of peptide elements which constitute the tag, for example at one of its termini, or in a loop region. Alternative methods of adding a tag include covalent modification of a protein after it has been expressed, through techniques such as intein technology.

Thus to attach the macromolecular entity to the protein lattice, one or both of the protein components may include, at a predetermined position in the components, an affinity tag attached to the macromolecular entity of interest.

Alternatively, the macromolecular entity of interest may have at a predetermined position in one of the components, an affinity tag attached to a macromolecular entity.

When a component of the protein lattice is known to form strong interactions with a known peptide sequence, that peptide sequence may be used as a tag to be added to the target macromolecular entity. Where no such tight binding partner is known, suitable tags may be identified by means of screening. The types of screening possible are phage- display techniques, or redundant chemical library approaches to produce a large number of different short (for example 3-50 amino acids) peptides. The tightest binding peptide elements may be identified using standard techniques, for example amplification and sequencing in the case of phage-displayed libraries or by means of peptide sequencing in the case of redundant libraries.

To attach the macromolecular entity to the protein lattice using an affinity tag on the lattice or the macromolecular entity, the macromolecular entity may be allowed to diffuse into, and hence become attached to, a pre-formed protein lattice. For example, annealing of the bound macromolecular entity into its lowest energy configurations in the protein lattice may be performed using controlled cooling in a liquid nitrogen cryostream. Alternatively, the macromolecular entity may be mixed with the components during formation of the protein lattice to assemble with the lattice.

In another class of uses, proteins having useful properties could be incorporated as one of the subunits in one of the components.

The protein lattices of the invention may be used to facilitate the imaging of macromolecules and complexes that resist crystallisation.

A use in which an entity is attached to the protein lattice is to perform X-ray crystallography of the macromolecular entities. In this case, the regular structure of the protein lattice allows the macromolecular entities to be held in an array at a predetermined position relative to a repeating unit, so that they are held in a regular array and in a regular orientation. X-ray crystallography is important in biochemical research and rational drug design.

The protein lattice having an array of macromolecular entities supported thereof may be studied using standard X-ray crystallographic techniques. Use of the protein lattice as a support in X-ray crystallography is expected to provide numerous and significant advantages over current technology and protocol for X-ray crystallography, including the following:

(1) Significantly lower amounts of macromolecule will be required (probably of order micrograms rather than milligrams). This will allow determination of some previously intractable targets.

(2) Use of affinity tags will allow structure determination without the typical requirement for a number of purification steps.

(3) There will be no need to crystallize the macromolecular entity. This is a difficult and occasionally insurmountable step in traditional X-ray structure determination.

(4) There will be no need to obtain crystalline derivatives for each novel crystal structure to obtain the required phase information. Since the majority of scattering matter will be the known protein lattice in each case, determination of the structure may be automated and achieved rapidly by a computer user with little or no crystallographic expertise. (5) The complexes of a protein with chemicals (substrates/drugs) and with other proteins can be examined without requiring entirely new crystallization conditions.

(6) The process is expected to be extremely rapid and universally applicable, which will provide enormous savings in time and costs.

For use in catalysing biotransformations, enzymes may be attached to the protein lattice, or incorporated in the protein lattice.

For use in data storage, it may be possible to attach a protein which is optically or electronically active. One example is Bacteriorhodopsin, but many other proteins can be used in this capacity. In this case, the protein lattice would hold the attached protein in a highly ordered array, thereby allowing the array to be addressed. The protein lattice is expected to be able to overcome the size limitations of existing matrices for holding proteins for use in data storage.

For use in a display, it may be possible to attach a protein which is photoactive or fluorescent. In this case, the protein lattice would hold the attached protein in a highly ordered array, thereby allowing the array to be addressed for displaying an image.

For use in charge separation, a protein which is capable of carrying out a charge separation process may be attached to the protein lattice, or incorporated in the protein lattice. Then the protein may be induced to carry out the separation, for example biochemically by a "fuel" such as ATP or optically in the case of a photoactive centre such as chlorophyll or a photoactive protein such as rhodopsin. A variety of charge separation processes might be performed in this way, for example ion pumping or development of a photo-voltaic charge.

For use as a nanowire, a protein which is capable of electrical conduction may be attached to the protein lattice, or incorporated in the protein lattice. Using an anisotropic protein lattice, it might be able to provide the capability of carrying current in a particular direction.

For use as a motor, proteins which are capable of induced expansion/contraction may be incorporated into the protein lattice.

The protein lattices may be used as a mould. For example, silicon could be diffused or otherwise impregnated into the pores of the protein lattice, thus either partially or completely filling the lattice interstices. The protein material comprising the original lattice may, if required, then be removed, for example, through the use of a hydrolysing solution.

The ordered lattices may be used to capture nanoparticles, such as gold

nanoparticles, and be used in optical and electronic circuitry or in biosensing methods.

The invention is illustrated in the following Examples.

Examples

Example 1: Fusion Construct Generation

One consistently successful example of an AHIR-Streptag fusion, designated LC4, has the amino acid sequence:

MTGTMKIYYEHDADLGFILGKKVAVLGFGSQGHAHAL LKDSGVDVRVGLRKGS RSWEKAEAAGLRVLPVAEAVREADVVMVLLPDEKQAQVYREEVEP LKEGGAL AFAHGFNVHFGQIKPRKDLDVWMVAPKGPGHLVRSEYGGGSNWSHPOFEKRPP GGSGVPALVAVHQDASGSAFPTALAYAKAIGAARAGVIATTFKDETETDLFGEQA VLCGGLTRLIRAGFETLVEAGYPPEMAYFETVHEVKLIVDLIYEAGLKGMRYSISN TAEYGDYTRGDLAVPLEETKRRMREILRQIQSGEFAREWMLENQVGSPVLEA RK RWAAHPIEEVGSRLRAMMRS (SEQ ID NO: 1)

Underlined only sequences are vector derived, Bold only sequences are linker sequences, and the BoldUnderlined sequence is Streptag II. The remaining sequence is Thermus thermophilus AHIR residues 1-325. This portion of the AHIR gene was cloned from Thermus thermophilus genomic DNA into a pUC-19 derived plasmid before insertion of the Streptag II and linker sequence between residues 140 and 143. All cloning was accomplished using standard molecular biology techniques. The vector sequence is shown in SEQ ID NO: 2.

Expression

Expression of LC4 protein was accomplished by inoculation of a single colony of

E. coli (strain BL21 star (DE3), but other strains could be used) into between lOmls and 1 litre of LB broth followed by an overnight incubation (typically 16hrs, 37°C). Purification

Cultures were harvested (5000g, 5min) and lysed by soni cation into l/50th culture volume of phosphate buffered saline (PBS).

Purification of LC4 from crude lysate has been accomplished successfully by two distinct routes, although other standard biochemical purification methods are also possible.

Strategy 1

1) The lysate was heated (65°C, 30min) and pelleted (5000g, 20min);

2) Three ammonium sulphate cuts were performed, in each case taking the fraction precipitating at 25% saturation (22°C) was taken and resuspended in 5ml PBS;

3) The resuspended solution was fractionated on a superose 6 size exclusion column, eluting in PBS, and the peak corresponding to the 453kDa dodecamer was pooled and concentrated as required. Strategy 2

1) The lysate was clarified (50,000g, 30min, 4°C);

2) Clarified lysate was applied to a streptactin column (GE Healthcare) and eluted using desthiobiotin as per the manufacturer's instructions;

3) The eluted protein was fractionated on a superose 6 size exclusion column, eluted in PBS, and the peak corresponding to the 453kDa dodecamer was pooled and

concentrated as required.

Streptavidin Core Streptavidin was purchased from IBA (www.iba- lifesciences.eom/details/product/2.html) in purified form.

Example 2: 3D Lattice Formation

Precipitates formed by the combination Strep tagged AHTR and Streptavidin were "dissolved" by heating. The exact temperature at which the precipitates disappeared varied with the precise construct - but in PBS (Dulbecco A phosphate buffered saline) was typically in the 60-70 °C region. For LC4 formed from 1 : 1 subunit ratio with Streptavidin the temperature at which visible dissociation occurred was between 63°C and 65°C. This temperature we call the melt temperature.

Optimal lattice formation with LC4 occurs at elevated temperatures (greater than 50°C). This temperature may either be constant (e.g. in an incubator, heating block or thermocycler) or repeatedly cycled between high and low temperatures (using a thermocycler).

Purified LC4 was mixed (typically to give a final concentration of between 5 and 20mg/ml) with core Streptavidin in PBS. The optimal molar ratio of LC4 to Streptavidin was approximately 1 LC4 (dodecamer) to 4 Streptavidin (tetramers), i.e. a ratio of 3 first components to 4 second components. However successful lattice formation has been achieved at ratios both lower and higher than this.

Cubic lattices >100μπι were observed in <2 hours at a constant temperature of 55°C. Growth for 24 hours produced larger crystals.

Thermal cycling involves oscillating for 4-72 hours over a temperature range (typically 52°C-62°C) with a total period of approximately 1 minute (30 seconds each at the high and low temperatures) per cycle.

Both strategies have been used to produce lattices with linear dimensions up to

0.5mm.