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pH-dependent interactions of coacervate-forming histidine-rich peptide with model lipid membranes
Biological and Biomimetic Materials Laboratory (BBML), Center for Sustainable Materials (SusMat), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Singapore.
Biological and Biomimetic Materials Laboratory (BBML), Center for Sustainable Materials (SusMat), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Singapore.
School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Singapore.
Department of Chemistry, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath, United Kingdom.
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2024 (English)In: Frontiers in Soft Matter, E-ISSN 2813-0499, Vol. 3Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Peptide-based liquid droplets (coacervates) produced by spontaneous liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), have emerged as a promising class of drug delivery systems due to their high entrapping efficiency and the simplicity of their formulation. However, the detailed mechanisms governing their interaction with cell membranes and cellular uptake remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the interactions of peptide coacervates composed of HB pep —peptide derived from the histidine-rich beak proteins (HBPs) of the Humboldt squid—with model cellular membranes in the form of supported lipid bilayers (SLBs). We employed quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D), neutron reflectometry (NR) and atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to reveal the nature of these interactions in the absence of fluorescent labels or tags. HB pep forms small oligomers at pH 6 whereas it forms µm-sized coacervates at physiological pH. Our findings reveal that both HB pep oligomers and HB pep -coacervates adsorb onto SLBs at pH 6 and 7.4, respectively. At pH 6, when the peptide carries a net positive charge, HB pep oligomers insert into the SLB, facilitated by the peptide’s interactions with the charged lipids and cholesterol. Importantly, however, HB pep coacervate adsorption at physiological pH, when it is largely uncharged, is fully reversible, suggesting no significant lipid bilayer rearrangement. HB pep coacervates, previously identified as efficient drug delivery vehicles, do not interact with the lipid membrane in the same manner as traditional cationic drug delivery systems or cell-penetrating peptides. Based on our findings, HB pep coacervates at physiological pH cannot cross the cell membrane by a simple passive mechanism and are thus likely to adopt a non-canonical cell entry pathway.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Frontiers Media S.A., 2024. Vol. 3
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Molecular Biology
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URN: urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-74852DOI: 10.3389/frsfm.2023.1339496OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mau-74852DiVA, id: diva2:1947206
Available from: 2025-03-25 Created: 2025-03-25 Last updated: 2025-03-25Bibliographically approved

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