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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Dawei He, Dr Jon Marles-WrightORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Ferritin family proteins are found in all kingdoms of life and act to store iron within a protein cage and to protect the cell from oxidative damage caused by the Fenton reaction. The structural and biochemical features of the ferritins have been widely exploited in bionanotechnology applications: from the production of metal nanoparticles; as templates for semi-conductor production; and as scaffolds for vaccine design and drug delivery. In this review we first discuss the structural properties of the main ferritin family proteins, and describe how their organisation specifies their functions. Second, we describe materials science applications of ferritins that rely on their ability to sequester metal within their cavities. Finally, we explore the use of ferritin as a container for drug delivery and as a scaffold for the production of vaccines.
Author(s): He D, Marles-Wright J
Publication type: Review
Publication status: Published
Journal: New Biotechnology
Year: 2015
Volume: 32
Issue: 6
Pages: 651–657
Print publication date: 25/12/2015
Online publication date: 05/01/2015
Acceptance date: 05/01/2015
ISSN (print): 1871-6784
ISSN (electronic): 1876-4347
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nbt.2014.12.006
DOI: 10.1016/j.nbt.2014.12.006
PubMed id: 25573765
