Templated construction of a zn-selective protein dimerization motif.

Here, we report that the approach of metal-templated ligand synthesis can be applied to construct a dimeric protein assembly (BMOERIDC12), which is stabilized by noncovalent interactions and flexible covalent cross-linkers around the Zn templates. Despite its flexibility, BMOERIDC12 selectively binds ZnII over other divalent metals and undergoes dimerization upon metal binding. Such simultaneous fulfillment of plasticity and selectivity is a hallmark of cellular signaling events that involve ligand/metal-induced protein dimerization.