Self-decorating cells via surface-initiated enzymatic controlled radical polymerization

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology
• Synthetic Biology
• Surface Chemistry

Background:

• Cell surface engineering is crucial for modifying biological functions.
• Enzymatic polymerization offers precise control over polymer synthesis.
• Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) can be utilized for surface-initiated polymerizations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore enzymatic catalysis for polymer synthesis on Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell surfaces.
• To compare bioRAFT polymerization and bioATRP for cell surface modification.
• To investigate the impact of polymer surface modification on yeast cell phenotype.

Main Methods:

• Surface display of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) on yeast cells.
• Enzymatic catalysis of surface-initiated bioRAFT polymerization and bioATRP.
• Characterization of polymer-modified yeast cells.
• Analysis of changes in yeast growth, aggregation, and enzyme conjugation.

Main Results:

• Successful polymer synthesis on the surface of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells using surface-displayed HRP.
• BioATRP demonstrated superior performance over bioRAFT polymerization for cell surface polymer grafting.
• Surface polymer modification significantly altered yeast cell phenotype, including growth and aggregation.
• Clickable polymers on the cell surface enabled the conjugation of non-native enzymes.

Conclusions:

• Enzymatic surface-initiated polymerization provides a novel method for yeast cell surface engineering.
• Surface modification with synthetic polymers offers a versatile platform for tuning yeast cell properties.
• This approach opens new possibilities for bioorthogonal cell-surface engineering and functionalization.