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In nature, proteins self-assemble into various structures with different dimensions. To construct these nanostructures in laboratories, normally proteins with different symmetries are selected. However, most of these approaches are engineering-intensive and highly dependent on the accuracy of the protein design. Herein, we report that a simple native protein LecA assembles into one-dimensional nanoribbons and nanowires, two-dimensional nanosheets, and three-dimensional layered structures controlled mainly by small-molecule assembly-inducing ligands RnG ( n=1, 2, 3, 4, 5) with varying numbers of ethylene oxide repeating units. To understand the formation mechanism of the different morphologies controlled by the small-molecule structure, molecular simulations were performed from microscopic and mesoscopic view, which presented a clear relationship between the molecular structure of the ligands and the assembled patterns. These results introduce an easy strategy to control the assembly structure and dimension, which could shed light on controlled protein assembly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In nature, proteins are organized into highly ordered self‐assembled structures with various morphologies and dimensions. In their Communication on page 10691 ff., Y. Ma, G. Chen, and co‐workers report the fabrication of protein assemblies by using native protein LecA as a building block through sugar‐‐protein interactions and rhodamine dimerization. The morphologies and dimensions of the protein assemblies can be controlled by the length of the tether between the sugar and rhodamine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]