Designing protein building blocks for advanced materials

Proteins are the building blocks of life. These biomolecules comprise chains of amino acids that fold into precise shapes to perform specific jobs in nature. But these elegant structures form only under narrow pH and temperature conditions, a property dictated by billions of years of evolution that has limited efforts to develop synthetic, protein-based advanced materials.

Now, researchers led by the University of Delaware's Darrin Pochan have designed small protein fragments, or peptides, that can assemble themselves into well-organized structures across an unusually wide range of conditions and scales. The key lies in how positive and negative charges are carefully arranged on the peptides, giving them instructions for how to stick together in extreme conditions. The findings are published in Science.

Protein-based building blocks offer a promising, sustainable platform for materials development. They can potentially be produced biologically, degrade into environmentally compatible components and are well-suited for biomedical applications.

"This work is fundamental research that opens the door to potentially beautiful technology," said Pochan, a Distinguished Professor of Materials Science at UD's College of Engineering. "Sustained federal, industrial and university investment in this kind of basic science is essential for real innovation in the long run."

Pochan's laboratory focuses on designing molecular building blocks that assemble into novel materials. His advances were recently recognized with his designation as a 2026 Materials Research Society (MRS) Fellow.