REVIEW: Encapsulins: Structure, Properties, and Biotechnological Applications

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Nelly S. Chmelyuk^1,2, Vera V. Oda¹, Anna N. Gabashvili¹, and Maxim A. Abakumov^1,2,a*

¹National University of Science and Technology “MISIS”, 119049 Moscow, Russia

²Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, 117977 Moscow, Russia

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received September 16, 2022; Revised November 4, 2022; Accepted November 7, 2022

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In 1994 a new class of prokaryotic compartments was discovered, collectively called “encapsulins” or “nanocompartments”. Encapsulin shell protomer proteins self-assemble to form icosahedral structures of various diameters (24-42 nm). Inside of nanocompartments shells, one or several cargo proteins, diverse in their functions, can be encapsulated. In addition, non-native cargo proteins can be loaded into nanocompartments, and shell surfaces can be modified via various compounds, which makes it possible to create targeted drug delivery systems, labels for optical and MRI imaging, and to use encapsulins as bioreactors. This review describes a number of strategies of encapsulins application in various fields of science, including biomedicine and nanobiotechnologies.

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KEY WORDS: encapsulins, self-organization, nanocontainer systems, targeted delivery, genetic tags, cell tracking

DOI: 10.1134/S0006297923010042

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