ABSTRACT
The relatively recent explosion of information on protein structure and function has led to a shift in how proteins are perceived. Detailed structural information, obtained by techniques such as x-ray crystallography, have provided an intricate picture of the conformational properties that underlie protein function. Coupling of this structural information with molecular modeling and physical manipulation techniques, such as steered molecular dynamics simulations and atomic force spectroscopy, has enabled the detailed characterization of proteins’ structural and biochemical responses to stimuli such as applied stress.1,2 In parallel with these molecular characterizations of protein structure and function, an interest has developed in the synthesis and characterization of protein-based materials, or materials biotechnology. While scientists have long studied the material properties of structural proteins, such as silk, elastin, collagen, and keratin, it is only more recently that the interesting material properties of other proteins, and their subunits, are being recognized.
