A general method was developed for promoting peptide assembly and protein polymerization to form nanoscale patterns on various surfaces with an atomic force microscope(AFM) operated in a liquid. By scanning solid surfaces with an AFM tip, we showed that peptide monomers assemble at a higher rate in the tip-scanned area compared to other regions. The promotion is attributed to the mechanical force applied by the scanning tip. This kind of mechanical-force-promoted assembly was also observed with different peptides on various substrates. The force promoting peptide assembly provides a simple and practical solution for preparing and building peptide and protein architectures for future nanodevices.
Interfacial gaseous nanobubbles which have remarkable properties such as unexpectedly long lifetime and significant potential applications, are drawing more and more attention. However, the recent dispute about the contamination or gas inside the nanobubbles causes a large confusion due to the lack of simple and clean method to produce gas nanobubbles.Here we report a convenient and clean method to effectively produce interfacial nanobubbles based on a pure water system.By adding the cold water cooled at 4℃ for more than 48 h onto highly oriented pyrolytic graphite(HOPG) surface, we find that the average density and total volume of nanobubbles are increased to a high level and mainly dominated by the concentrations of the dissolved gases in cold water. Our findings and methods are crucial and helpful for settling the newly arisen debates on gas nanobubbles.
采用兔骨骼肌Actin作为研究对象,通过搭建原子力显微镜(Atomic force microscope,AFM)液相实时进样装置观察并对比G-actin在不同衬底上的组装过程。实验中发现,Actin在云母衬底上组装时形成较少的成核位点,然后组装成长达几十微米的纤维;而在带有正电荷的磷脂膜(DPPC:DPTAP=4:1)衬底上则快速大量地成核,组装形成较短的纤维。成像时所用的机械力应≤50 p N,所用的衬底应带有一定的正电荷。研究结果为构建Actin轨道上的纳米分子马达运输系统提供了依据。
Molecularly thin water layer, with a hydrogen bonding network different from those in bulk water and ice, has unique properties and is generally involved in many important processes such as wetting, erosion, atmosphere chemical reaction, protein folding and biomolecular interaction. Here, we report a new water layer structure at room temperature, which is found inside nanobubbles by using synchrotron based scanning transmission soft X-ray microscopy(STXM). The three peaks 535.0, 536.8 and 540.9 e V at O K edge inside the nanobubbles show a novel characteristics of very thin water layers, which has never been observed before.
