Effect of Charged-cluster Distribution of the ZIF268 Zinc Finger Surface on Cell Membrane Permeability

To investigate the importance of charged-cluster distribution in cell permeability, ZIF268 zinc finger (ZF) was examined as a new target protein. We found that in addition to the total number of cationic charges, the surface distribution of cationic and anionic clusters has a significant impact on intracellular transport. These findings may be useful for predicting other ZFs with high membrane permeability based on the distribution of charged clusters and for redesigning natural ZFs to create artificial proteins with efficient membrane permeability.