Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41254310›Full record

ArticleNature chemistry2026

Computational design of superstable proteins through maximized hydrogen bonding.

Bin Zheng, Zhuojian Lu, Shangchen Wang, Lichao Liu, Mingjun Ao, Yurui Zhou, Guojing Tang, Ruishi Wang, Yuanhao Liu, Hantian Zhang and 11 more

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Nature chemistry, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing 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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Artificial intelligence virtual bone organoids (AIVBOs).Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026
    Review
  4. Review
  5. Exploration Editors' Favorite Research in 2025.Exploration (Beijing, China) · 2026
    Article
  6. Review
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

21 authors.

Bin Zheng *Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Zhuojian Lu *Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.ORCID 0009-0006-1671-8844
Shangchen Wang *Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Lichao Liu *Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.ORCID 0000-0003-4254-7453
Mingjun Ao *Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yurui ZhouState Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.ORCID 0009-0001-3550-6728
Guojing TangNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Ruishi WangNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yuanhao LiuNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Hantian ZhangNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yinying MengNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Jun QiuNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Tianfu FengNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Ziyi WangNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Renming LiuNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yuelong XiaoNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yutong LiuNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Ziling WangState Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yifen HuangNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Yajun JiangState Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.ORCID 0000-0002-0886-292X
Peng ZhengNanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC), School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Frontier Interdisciplinary Science Research Center, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China. pengz@nju.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0003-4792-6364

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 22222703National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 22477058National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 22588302National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China) 32271316
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Hydrogen bonds are fundamental chemical interactions that stabilize protein structures, particularly in β sheets, enabling resistance to mechanical stress and environmental extremes. Here, inspired by natural mechanostable proteins with shearing hydrogen bonds, such as titin and silk fibroin, we de novo designed superstable proteins by maximizing hydrogen-bond networks within force-bearing β strands. Using a computational framework combining artificial intelligence-guided structure and sequence design with all-atom molecular dynamics MD simulations, we systematically expanded protein architecture, increasing the number of backbone hydrogen bonds from 4 to 33. The resulting proteins exhibited unfolding forces exceeding 1,000 pN, about 400% stronger than the natural titin immunoglobulin domain, and retained structural integrity after exposure to 150 °C. This molecular-level stability translated directly to macroscopic properties, as demonstrated by the formation of thermally stable hydrogels. Our work introduces a scalable and efficient computational strategy for engineering robust proteins, offering a generalizable approach for the rational design of resilient protein systems for extreme environments.

Indexed as

ConnectinFibroinsProtein EngineeringProteinsHydrogen BondingMolecular Dynamics SimulationProtein StabilityConnectinFibroinsProteins

Identifiers

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Registered trials

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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.