CAREER: Design of Self-Assembled Stimulus Responsive Peptide Complexes

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This research program addresses the design of self-assembled stimulus responsive peptide complexes. Alpha helical coiled coils consist of two or more helical strands, wrapped into a superhelix, which bind to one another through interactions between core hydrophobic and surface hydrophilic amno acid sidechains. By introducing unnatural amino acids in coiled coil contexts, these studies will generate more diverse sequences, allowing the design of complexes suitable for next-generation peptide hydrogels. By engineering the appropriate behavior into isolated peptide complexes, this research addresses the design of "smart" materials that respond to physiological stimuli (pH, temperature, salt gradients). A formal program in Chemical Biology will be established, providing for the recruitment and training of students at both the undergraduate and graduate levels in the fundamentals and applications of work in this area, bridging the gap between chemistry and biology.With the support of this CAREER Award from the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program, Professor Alan Kennan, of the Department of Chemistry at Colorado State University, is carrying out fundamental studies related to the designed aggregation of proteins. By developing information about factors leading proteins to adopt particular structures, Professor Kennan designs assemblies of proteins that are expected to display unusual changes in response to their environment. These studies may lead to the development of "smart" materials that respond to physiological stimuli such as acidity, temperature and salt concentration. Professor Kennan will serve as the director of a new program in Chemical Biology, providing a variety of educational and support activities to recruit and train students in this interdisciplinary area, bridging the traditional disciplines of chemistry and biology.