Exploiting polymer nano-encapsulation of membrane proteins for agrochemical target identification

We have previously shown that the industrial polymer, Styrene-co-maleic acid (SMA), can be used to extract membrane proteins from native membranes. This allows preparations to be made that contain pure, active and stable membrane proteins that can be used for downstream structural and functional studies. In this project we explore the use of the SMA project to make proteins of relevance to the agrochemicals sector. We will examine whether the chosen proteins can be extracted from the chosen membrane system and whether the proteins have activity. We will then explore whether modifications of the SMA structure can be used to improve the overall process.