Synthetic Strategies for Artificial Lipidation of Functional Proteins

Biosynthesis of natural lipidated proteins is linked to important signal pathways, and therefore analyzing protein lipidation is crucial for understanding cellular functions. Artificial lipidation of proteins has attracted attention in recent decades as it allows modulation of the amphiphilic nature of the protein of interest, and is used in the design of drug-delivery systems containing antibodies anchored on a lipid bilayer carrier. However, the intrinsic hydrophobicity of lipids makes the synthesis of lipid-protein conjugates challenging with respect to the yield and selectivity of the lipidation. In this Minireview, the development of chemical and enzymatic synthetic strategies for the preparation of a range of lipid-protein conjugates that do not compromise the functions of the proteins are discussed as well as applications of the conjugates.