I. Popa

Mechanical reinforcement of protein L from Finegoldia magna points to a new bind-and-search mechanism

The paper investigates Protein L from Finegoldia magna, revealing a novel mechano-sensor mechanism where a low-avidity binding site detects antibody concentrations under mechanical stress.

Chemical unfolding of protein domains induces shape change in programmed protein hydrogels

This paper develops a method to tune the stiffness of protein-based hydrogels using polyelectrolytes, enabling shape-memory behavior through chemical denaturation.

Modeling Protein-based Hydrogels under Force

This paper models the biomechanical response of protein hydrogels under force, accounting for domain unfolding and network dynamics to reproduce visco-elastic effects.