Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39808735›Full record

ArticleACS synthetic biology2025

Quantitative Measurement of Molecular Permeability to a Synthetic Bacterial Microcompartment Shell System.

Eric J Young, Henning Kirst, Matthew E Dwyer, Josh V Vermaas, Cheryl A Kerfeld

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in ACS synthetic biology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Chemical reviews · 2026
    Review
  4. Article
  5. Architectural and biochemical advances in understanding microbial COThe Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology · 2026
    Review
  6. [COResearch square · 2026
    Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Eric J YoungEnvironmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94702, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-6770-6310
Henning KirstEnvironmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94702, United States.
Matthew E DwyerMSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-0690-564X
Josh V VermaasMSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States.ORCID 0000-0003-3139-6469
Cheryl A KerfeldEnvironmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94702, United States.ORCID 0000-0002-9977-8482

Funding

Structure and Function of Bacterial Microcompartment Shells from Human PathogensR01AI114975 · NIAID · UNIVERSITY OF CALIF-LAWRENC BERKELEY LAB · PI KERFELD, CHERYL A · 2015 to 2022
$3.0M
NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI114975
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Naturally evolved and synthetically designed forms of compartmentalization benefit encapsulated function by increasing local concentrations of substrates and protecting cargo from destabilizing environments and inhibitors. Crucial to understanding the fundamental principles of compartmentalization are experimental systems enabling the measurement of the permeability rates of small molecules. Here, we report the experimental measurement of the small-molecule permeability of a 40 nm icosahedral bacterial microcompartment shell. This was accomplished by heterologous loading of light-producing luciferase enzymes and kinetic measurement of luminescence using stopped-flow spectrophotometry. Compared to free enzyme, the luminescence signal kinetics was slower when the luciferase was encapsulated in bacterial microcompartment shells. The results indicate that substrates and products can still exchange across the shell, and modeling of the experimental data suggest that a 50× permeability rate increase occurs when shell vertices were vacant. Overall, our results suggest design considerations for the construction of heterologous bacterial microcompartment shell systems and compartmentalized function at the nanoscale.

Indexed as

PermeabilityEscherichia coliKineticsLuciferasesLuciferasesATPbiophysicscompartmentalizationmodelingmolecular permeabilitysynthetic biology

Identifiers

PMID39808735
PMCPMC12090211

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.