Screening de novo designed protein binders in unpurified lysate using flow induced dispersion analysis

Computational protein design can create binders against targets of interest, but identifying binders with sufficient affinity still requires biochemical screening of many designs. In this work, we test flow-induced dispersion analysis (FIDA) as a method for screening binders in a time and cost-effective manner. FIDA uses Taylor dispersion analysis to determine the hydrodynamic radius of fluorescently labelled biomolecules and their complexes. Here, we use FIDA to assess the binding of RFdiffusion-designed protein binders against the small helical peptide ALFA-tag and the GK domain of PSD-95. Successful binders can be identified in a single measurement using heat-treated bacterial lysates allowing rapid identification of binders with high affinity, and thermostability. Subsequent titration experiments show micromolar affinities for ALFA-tag binders and nanomolar affinities for GK domain binders. The lack of immobilization, the minimal sample volume, and the compatibility with complex biological samples, positions FIDA as a valuable tool for the screening and characterization of computationally generated protein binders.