In a sleek biochemistry laboratory at the University of Washington, postdoctoral fellow Yang Hsia is watching yellowish goo — the liquefied remains of E. coli — ooze through what looks like a gob of white marshmallow. “This isn’t super exciting,” he says.
While growing proteins in bacteria and then purifying them, using blobby white resin as a filter, doesn’t make for riveting viewing, the end product is extraordinary. Accumulating in Hsia’s resin is a totally artificial protein, unlike anything seen in nature, that might just be the ideal chassis for the first universal flu vaccine.
David Baker, Hsia’s adviser, calls this designer protein a “Death Star.” Imaged on his computer, its structure shows some resemblance to the notorious Star Wars superweapon. Though microscopic, by protein standards it’s enormous: a sphere made out of many interlocking pieces.
“We’ve figured out a way to put these building blocks together at the right angles to form these very complex nanostructures,” Baker explains. He plans to stud the exterior with proteins from a whole suite of flu strains so that the immune system will learn to recognize them and be prepared to fend off future invaders. A single Death Star will carry 20 different strains of the influenza virus.
