A Random Heteropolymer Model of Protein Aggregation

There have been dramatic developments in our ability to functionalize submicron scale objects with molecules enabling specific interactions between building blocks. To guide exploration in this design space, it is natural to look towards biology. In this context, the phenomenon of protein aggregation is a particularly appealing subject of study. Proteins navigate a complex and rugged energy landscape, and the design rules underlying their ability to avoid or take advantage of aggregated states in this landscape can be instructive for synthetic systems as well. We study a simple system consisting of a solution of random heteropolymers, and identify parameters that determine the structure of the aggregated phase.