A protein-polymer hybrid mediated by DNA.

Protein–polymer hybrids (PPHs) represent an important and rapidly expanding class of biomaterials. Typically in these hybrids the linkage between the protein and the polymer is covalent. Here we describe a straightforward approach to a noncovalent PPH that is mediated by DNA. Although noncovalent, the DNA-mediated approach affords the highly specific pairing and assembly properties of DNA. To obtain the protein–DNA conjugate for assembly of the PPH, we report here the first direct copper catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition-based protein–DNA conjugation. This significantly simplifies access to protein–DNA conjugates. The protein–DNA conjugate and partner polymer–DNA conjugate are readily assembled through annealing of the cDNA strands to obtain the PPH, the assembly of which was confirmed via dynamic light scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy.