Metal-Mediated Protein Engineering within Live Cells

Metal mediated several organic reactions are known which can be used inside the cellular medium for protein modifications, eventually for targeting diseases. Indeed, due to their ease of handling, rapid solubility, and effective cell penetration, metals are superior than any other competitor as a stimulus/mediator in organic reactions relevant with protein modifications. Metal mediated most effective reactions as a chemical biology tool are Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition(CuAAC)/click reactions or Pd mediated multiple chemical reactions for intra/extra cellular protein modifications etc. A few examples of Au(III), Ru(III) are also known. Among these, the click reaction has high potential for the management of biomolecules within cells, and thus this methodology is adopted broadly in chemistry, biology towards therapeutic applications in pharmacology. Fast kinetics in aqueous medium at ambient to normal temperature with specificity between precursors (e. g., azide and alkyne for click reactions which are bio-orthogonal to cells) are essential aspects behind the success of metal mediated intracellular reactions. This review dealt with specifically metal mediated protein modifications within live cells, the achievements and challenges.