Cytosolic delivery of proteins by cholesterol tagging

Protein-based imaging agents and therapeutics are superior in structural and functional diversity compared to small molecules and are much easier to design or screen. Antibodies or antibody fragments can be easily raised against virtually any target. Despite these fundamental advantages, the power and impact of protein-based agents are substantially undermined, only acting on a limited number of extracellular targets because macrobiomolecules cannot spontaneously cross the cell membrane. Conventional protein delivery techniques fail to address this fundamental problem in that protein cargos are predominantly delivered inside cells via endocytosis, a remarkably effective cell defense mechanism developed by Mother Nature to prevent intact biomolecules from entering the cytoplasm. Here, we report a unique concept, noncovalent cholesterol tagging, enabling virtually any compact proteins to permeate through the cell membrane, completely bypassing endocytosis. This simple plug-and-play platform greatly expands the biological target space and has the potential to transform basic biology studies and drug discovery.