An Experimental and Molecular Dynamics Study of Red Fluorescent Protein mCherry in Novel Aqueous Amino Acid Ionic Liquids.

The search for biocompatible ionic liquids (ILs) with novel biochemical and biomedical applications has recently gained greater attention. In this report, we characterize the effects of two novel amino acid-based aqueous ILs composed of tetramethylguanidinium (TMG) and amino acids on the structure and stability of a widely used red fluorescent protein (mCherry). Our experimental data shows that while the aspartic acid-based IL (TMGAsp) has effects similar to previously studied conventional ILs (BMIBF, EMIAc, and TMGAc), the alanine-based IL (TMGAla) has a much stronger destabilization effect on the protein structure.