Materials design using genetically engineered proteins

A variety of inorganic materials with amazingly complex structures and morphologies are produced by natural organisms. The fundamental mechanism underlying the natural biological synthesis of inorganic materials can be ascribed to the unique recognition and interaction of proteins with specific inorganic species. By mimicking natural biomineralization, genetically engineered proteins have in recent years been successfully utilized as platforms for the synthesis of inorganic nanostructures of various compositions under mild reaction conditions. Moreover, the precisely oriented assembly of genetically engineered proteins offers flexibility in designing inorganic nanostructures with desired complex architecture. This short review summarizes the recent progress in materials design using genetically engineered protein templates.