Front Cover: Exploiting SpyTag/SpyCatcher Technology to Design New Artificial Catalytic Copper Proteins (ChemBioChem 14/2025)

Abstract

Designing artificial metal sites in proteins is challenging due to the need to place the metal site in precise positions and to tailor the coordination environment of the metal. In article 10.1002/cbic.202500208, Matteo Tegoni and co-workers use a modular approach using the SpyTag/SpyCatcher technology to provide the Spy construct with a Cu²⁺/ATCUN site. The reconstituted copper protein showed enhanced ROS catalytic activity. This strategy enables versatile metalloprotein design by shifting complexity from a protein to a peptide.