Electrically conductive protein nanowires appear to be widespread in the microbial world and are a revolutionary “green” material for the fabrication of electronic devices. Electrically conductive pili (e-pili) assembled from type IV pilin monomers have independently evolved multiple times in microbial history as have electrically conductive archaella (e-archaella) assembled from homologous archaellin monomers. A role for e-pili in long-range (micrometer) extracellular electron transport has been demonstrated in some microbes. The surprising finding of e-pili in syntrophic bacteria and the role of e-pili as conduits for direct interspecies electron transfer have necessitated a reassessment of routes for electron flux in important methanogenic environments, such as anaerobic digesters and terrestrial wetlands. Pilin monomers similar to those found in e-pili may also be a major building block of the conductive “cables” that transport electrons over centimeter distances through continuous filaments of cable bacteria consisting of a thousand cells or more. Protein nanowires harvested from microbes have many functional and sustainability advantages over traditional nanowire materials and have already yielded novel electronic devices for sustainable electricity production, neuromorphic memory, and sensing. e-pili can be mass produced with an Escherichia coli chassis, providing a ready source of material for electronics as well as for studies on the basic mechanisms for long-range electron transport along protein nanowires. Continued exploration is required to better understand the electrification of microbial communities with microbial nanowires and to expand the “green toolbox” of sustainable materials for wiring and powering the emerging “Internet of things.”

中文翻译：

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蛋白质纳米线：微生物世界以及我们自己的电气化。


导电蛋白质纳米线似乎在微生物世界中广泛存在，是用于制造电子设备的革命性“绿色”材料。由 IV 型菌毛蛋白单体组装而成的导电菌毛 (e-pili) 在微生物历史上独立进化了多次，就像由同源古菌素单体组装而成的导电古菌 (e-archaella) 一样。一些微生物已证明电子菌毛在长程（微米）细胞外电子传输中的作用。互养细菌中 e-pili 的惊人发现以及 e-pili 作为直接种间电子转移管道的作用，需要重新评估重要产甲烷环境（例如厌氧消化池和陆地湿地）中的电子通量路径。与电子菌毛中发现的类似的菌毛蛋白单体也可能是导电“电缆”的主要组成部分，该“电缆”通过由一千个或更多细胞组成的电缆细菌的连续细丝在厘米距离内传输电子。从微生物中获取的蛋白质纳米线比传统纳米线材料具有许多功能和可持续性优势，并且已经产生了用于可持续发电、神经形态记忆和传感的新型电子设备。 e-pili 可以利用大肠杆菌底盘进行大规模生产，为电子产品以及沿着蛋白质纳米线的长程电子传输基本机制的研究提供现成的材料来源。 需要继续探索，以更好地了解微生物纳米线对微生物群落的电气化，并扩展可持续材料的“绿色工具箱”，用于布线和为新兴的“物联网”提供动力。”