Incorporation of Molecular Reorientation into Modeling Surface Pressure-Area Isotherms of Langmuir Monolayers

Langmuir monolayers can be assembled from molecules that change from a low-energy orientation occupying a large cross-sectional area to a high-energy orientation of small cross-sectional area as the lateral pressure grows. Examples include cyclosporin A, amphotericin B, nystatin, certain alpha-helical peptides, cholesterol oxydation products, dumbbell-shaped amphiphiles, organic–inorganic nanoparticles and hybrid molecular films. The transition between the two orientations leads to a shoulder in the surface pressure-area isotherm. We propose a theoretical model that describes the shoulder and can be used to extract the energy cost per molecule for the reorientation. Our two-state model is based on a lattice–sublattice approximation that hosts the two orientations and a corresponding free energy expression which we minimize with respect to the orientational distribution. Inter-molecular interactions other than steric repulsion are ignored. We provide an analysis of the model, including an analytic solution for one specific lateral pressure near a point of inflection in the surface pressure-area isotherm, and an approximate solution for the entire range of the lateral pressures. We also use our model to estimate energy costs associated with orientational transitions from previously reported experimental surface pressure-area isotherms.     

Effects of Fullerenes on Phospholipid Membranes: A Langmuir Monolayer Study

We investigate two‐component Langmuir monolayers of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC)/C₆₀ by recording surface pressure/area (π/A) and surface potential/area (ΔV/A) isotherms and by direct Brewster angle microscopy (BAM) imaging. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is employed to study morphologies of the mixed monolayers transferred to a solid substrate by the Langmuir–Blodgett technique. C₆₀ is shown to have little influence on isotherms of the DPPC/C₆₀ monolayers even at a molar fraction as high as X_C60=0.3. The elastic modulus ( ) versus π curves of the DPPC/C₆₀ monolayers almost overlay each other, as well as that of pure DPPC, that is, the elasticities of pure DPPC monolayers and DPPC/C₆₀ monolayers are remarkably similar. AFM studies reveal that fullerene flocs form at low surface pressures (π≤15 mN m^?1), are gradually disaggregated and dispersed in the DPPC monolayer with increasing surface pressure up to 35 mN m^?1, and are then progressively squeezed out to form protruded islands as the surface pressure increases up to 65 mN m^?1. Our work provides experimental support to the computational result that C₆₀ can dissolve in lipid bilayers without significantly compromising their mechanical properties, a finding which has important implications for the toxicity and development of drug vehicles from fullerene materials.     

Langmuir单分子膜的动态稳定性:

应用KSV LB-5000型Langmuir膜天平的VISCOS模式,对硬脂酸和19,21-二炔廿二碳酸(DDA)单分子膜在有无亚相离子、不同目标膜压、不同膜障振动频率和不同温度下的动态稳定性作了研究.实验表明,单分子膜的目标膜压越低,膜障交变振动的频率越低,单分子膜越稳定,亚相中加有金属正离子对单分子膜的动态稳定性也有利.     

Genetic Incorporation of a Reactive Isothiocyanate Group into Proteins

Methods for the site‐specific modification of proteins are useful for introducing biological probes into proteins and engineering proteins with novel activities. Herein, we genetically encode a novel noncanonical amino acid (ncAA) that contains an aryl isothiocyanate group which can form stable thiourea crosslinks with amines under mild conditions. We show that this ncAA (pNCSF) allows the selective conjugation of proteins to amine‐containing molecular probes through formation of a thiourea bridge. pNCSF was also used to replace a native salt bridge in myoglobin with an intramolecular crosslink to a proximal Lys residue, leading to increased thermal stability. Finally, we show that pNCSF can form stable intermolecular crosslinks between two interacting proteins.     

Interaction of Egg-Sphingomyelin with DOPC in Langmuir Monolayers

Lipid rafts are a dynamic microdomain structure found in recent years, enriched in sphin-golipids, cholesterol and particular proteins. The change of structure and function of lipid rafts could result in many diseases. In this work, the monolayer miscibility behavior of mixed systems of Egg-Sphingomyelin (ESM) with 1, 2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine was in-vestigated in terms of mean surface area per molecule and excess molecular area ΔA_ex at certain surface pressure, surface pressure and excess surface pressure Δπ_ex at certain mean molecular area. The stability and compressibility of the mixed monolayers was assessed by the parameters of surface excess Gibbs free energy ΔG_ex, excess Helmholtz energy ΔH_ex and elasticity. Thermodynamic analysis indicates ΔA_ex and Δπe_ex in the binary systems with positive deviations from the ideal behavior, suggesting repulsive interaction. The max-imum of ΔG_ex and ΔH_ex was at the molar fraction of ESM of 0.6, demonstrating the mixed monolayer was more unstable. The repulsive interaction induced phase separation in the monolayer     

Molecular Dynamic Studies on Langmuir Monolayers of Stearic Acid

Compression isotherm for stearic acid was obtained by means of molecular dynamic simulation and compared to experimentally measured values for the Langmuir monolayers. Compared to the previous simulation, the present simulation has provided a method to reproduce the compression of the monolayer. The result is consistent with other experimental results. By analyzing the alkyl tails, the configuration of stearic acid molecules during the compression process was studied and a uniform monolayer was obtained after compression. Stearic acid molecules were observed to form fine organized monolayer from completely random structure. Hexatic order of the arrangement has been identified for the distribution of stearic acid molecules in the monolayer. At the end of the compression, the stearic acid molecules were tightly packed in the gap of two other molecules. At last, the hydrogen bonds in the system were analyzed. The main hydrogen bonds were from stearic acid-water interaction and their intensities constantly decreased with the decreased of surface area per molecule. The weak hydrogen bond interaction between stearic acid molecules may be the reason of easy collapse.     

Correlation of Insulin‐Enhancing Properties of Vanadium‐Dipicolinate Complexes in Model Membrane Systems: Phospholipid Langmuir Monolayers and AOT Reverse Micelles

We explore the interactions of V^III‐, V^IV‐, and V^V‐2,6‐pyridinedicarboxylic acid (dipic) complexes with model membrane systems and whether these interactions correlate with the blood‐glucose‐lowering effects of these compounds on STZ‐induced diabetic rats. Two model systems, dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) Langmuir monolayers and AOT (sodium bis(2‐ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate) reverse micelles present controlled environments for the systematic study of these vanadium complexes interacting with self‐assembled lipids. Results from the Langmuir monolayer studies show that vanadium complexes in all three oxidation states interact with the DPPC monolayer; the V^III–phospholipid interactions result in a slight decrease in DPPC molecular area, whereas V^IV and V^V–phospholipid interactions appear to increase the DPPC molecular area, an observation consistent with penetration into the interface of this complex. Investigations also examined the interactions of V^III‐ and V^IV‐dipic complexes with polar interfaces in AOT reverse micelles. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopic studies of V^IV complexes in reverse micelles indicate that the neutral and smaller 1:1 V^IV‐dipic complex penetrates the interface, whereas the larger 1:2 V^IV complex does not. UV/Vis spectroscopy studies of the anionic V^III‐dipic complex show only minor interactions. These results are in contrast to behavior of the V^V‐dipic complex, [VO₂(dipic)]^?, which penetrates the AOT/isooctane reverse micellar interface. These model membrane studies indicate that V^III‐, V^IV‐, and V^V‐dipic complexes interact with and penetrate the lipid interfaces differently, an effect that agrees with the compounds’ efficacy at lowering elevated blood glucose levels in diabetic rats.     

Langmuir膜分子动力学模拟中的头基效应

运用分子动力学方法研究了Ｌａｎｇｍｕｉｒ膜的结构和相变特性，比较了不同的头基模型对模拟的影响。发现在压膜过程中，膜分子的结构和排列存在相变，其中，分子脂肪链的倾角随着膜内每分子所占面积的增大而增大，分子链内无序的主要原因是脂肪链两端二面角的扭曲造成的。由不同模型模拟得出，带电模型的分子分布比较紊乱，倾角较小。这说明亚相环境和头基的不同，会影响模拟得的膜分子的排列，选择合理的头基模型非常重要。     

气/液界面Langmuir单分子膜的原位拉曼光谱

提出了一种原位测量气/液界面Langmuir单分子膜拉曼光谱的新方法, 即利用SERS技术, 通过降低亚相的方法来获得气/液界面Langmuir单分子膜的原位拉曼光谱. 利用这种方法, 用原位拉曼光谱测量系统得到了信噪比较好的十八胺及二棕榈酰磷脂酰胆碱单分子膜的拉曼光谱, 在分子水平上获取了单分子膜中的结构信息.     

微生物脂肽与磷脂的混合单分子膜性质

研究了一种微生物脂肽--表面活性素与二肉豆蔻酰磷脂酰胆碱(DMPC)在气,液界面形成的混合单分子膜性质.测定了混合单分子膜的表面压.分子面积(л-A)曲线,根据л-A曲线获得了不同表面压下混合单分子膜的过剩面积(Aex)和混合过剩自由能(△Gmex)与混合单分子膜中表面活性素摩尔分数的关系.Aex和△Gmex的计算结果均表明,表面活性素与DMPC在纯水亚相上形成的混合单分子膜中不相容,二者之间 的相互作用主要是排斥力.通过原子力显微镜观察了在表面压15mN/m下的混合单分子膜的LB膜,发现表面活性素与DMPC发生了微相分离,说明二者在混合膜中的烷基链取向不同,这可能是二者发生排斥作用的主要原因之一.此外,还研究了亚相pH对混合单分子膜相容性的影响,发现表面活性素与DMPC在混合单分子膜中的相容性在碱性环境下增强,这可能与二者极性头基之间的相互作用有关.     

Ion-Sensitive Monolayers and Langmuir–Blodgett Films of Amphiphilic Cyclen: Selectivity and Regeneration

Complexation of dicetyl cyclen with transition metal ions in the monolayers on the surface of aqueous solutions of Cu(II), Ni(II), Zn(II), Ag(I) and their mixtures was studied. It was established that the selectivity of the interaction of the monolayer composed of this ligand with transition metal ions is determined by the subphase pH value. It is disclosed that, in the acidic region of subphase pH values, dicetyl cyclen in the monolayer bounds predominantly the Ni(II) ions from solutions containing Cu²⁺ and Ni²⁺ ions, although its complexes with Ni(II) in the bulk under these conditions are less stable than similar complexes with Cu(II). The effect of conformational and charge states of the ligand on the protonation of macrocycle and the stability of its complexes is discussed. The possibility of the reversible regeneration of the monolayers and the Langmuir–Blodgett films of the complexes of dicetyl cyclen and copper(II) ions is shown to occur with no changes in the structure and properties of this planar system. It is shown that the Langmuir–Blodgett films based on dicetyl cyclen can be used as a sensor element for the quantitative analysis of the content of Cu(II) ions in dilute solutions.     

Atomic Force Microscopy of Azobenzene-Derived Alkanethiolate Monolayers on Gold

Self-assembled monolayer of two azobenzene-derived alkanethiols with different terminal alkyl chain lengths (shortly as C₈C₃SH and C₁C₄SH) on gold were studied using atomic force microscopy. The C₈C₃SH SAMs showed a very regular packing structure with a lattice constant of a=0.57±0.04 nm, b=0.73±0.06 nm and θ=120±10°, mainly domianted by the terminated alkyl chains. On the other hand, the C₁C₄SH SAMs exhibited a number of different packing domains on the gold surface. The closest packing lattice was a=0.37±0.04 nm, b=0.47±0.02 nm, and θ=,107±6°, most probably representing the aggregation of azobenzene chromophoren. Another two typical lattices observed were a=0.65±0.03 nm, b=0.72±0.03 nm, θ=120±2°, and a=0.47±0.03 nm.b=0.47±0.03 nm.θ=100±10°, respectively. The packing structure of C₁C₄SH monolayers on gold is believed to be dominated by the azobenzene chromophore.     

气液界面磷脂单分子膜的表面增强拉曼光谱

采用纳米银胶作为成膜亚相, 原位获得了十八胺单分子膜、十八胺/卵磷脂复合膜的表面增强拉曼信号.研究表明,增强主要来源于亚相中的银粒子与成膜分子之间较强的作用.通过在磷脂膜内添加十八胺分子辅助增强而获取了卵磷脂的分子振动信息.     

Electrochemical Properties of Phospholipid Monolayers at Liquid–Liquid Interfaces

Biomembrane models built at the interface between two immiscible electrolytes (ITIES) are useful systems to study phenomena of biological relevance by means of their electrochemical processes. The unique properties of ITIES allow one either to control or measure the potential difference across the biomimetic membranes. Herein we focus on phospholipid monolayers adsorbed at liquid–liquid interfaces, and besides discussing recent developments on the subject, we describe electrochemical techniques that can be used to get insight on the interfacial processes and electrostatic properties of phospholipid membranes at the ITIES. In particular, we examine the electrochemical and physicochemical properties of (modified) phospholipid monolayers and their interaction with other biologically relevant compounds. The use of liquid–liquid electrochemistry as a powerful tool to characterize drug properties is outlined. Although this review is not a survey of all the work in the field, it provides a comprehensive referencing to current research.     

Direct Visualization of Amlodipine Intervention into Living Cells by Means of Fluorescence Microscopy

Amlodipine, a unique long-lasting calcium channel antagonist and antihypertensive drug, has weak fluorescence in aqueous solutions. In the current paper, we show that direct visualization of amlodipine in live cells is possible due to the enhanced emission in cellular environment. We examined the impact of pH, polarity and viscosity of the environment as well as protein binding on the spectral properties of amlodipine in vitro, and used quantum chemical calculations for assessing the mechanism of fluorescence quenching in aqueous solutions. The confocal fluorescence microscopy shows that the drug readily penetrates the plasma membrane and accumulates in the intracellular vesicles. Visible emission and photostability of amlodipine allow confocal time-lapse imaging and the drug uptake monitoring.     

紫杉醇/DPPC单分子层相互作用的Langmuir膜技术和原子力显微镜研究

紫杉醇透过细胞膜的药物吸收过程及其脂质体制备与紫杉醇/脂质相互作用密切相关. 通过Langmuir膜技术和原子力显微镜(AFM)观测, 研究了不同比例的二棕榈酰磷脂胆碱(DPPC)/紫杉醇(paclitaxel)二元混合系统在空气/水界面上的单分子层相互作用. 对膜压-面积(π-A)曲线的测量和基于π-A曲线的混合性分析、热力学稳定性分析及可压缩性分析表明: 紫杉醇和DPPC相互混合, 不同分子间存在斥力, 混合单分子层出现相分离. 除紫杉醇摩尔分数(x_pac)为0.4外, 这些现象均随单分子层压缩增加到一定程度后出现反转|对x_pac＝0.4, 不同分子间混合程度、斥力作用和单分子层中相分离均远超过其他混合比例的单分子层, 且随单分子层压缩程度持续增加, 不同分子间相互作用的影响远远超过压缩程度|x_pac≤0.4时, 脂质单分子层结构受紫杉醇影响较小, 超过0.4后脂质单分子层结构遭到严重破坏. 利用原子力显微镜对紫杉醇/DPPC单分子层进行了表面形貌观测, 证实了Langmuir研究的结果.     

Structural Modification Influences the Characteristics of Langmuir Monolayers from Aromatic Carboxylic Acids

The molecular organization of purely aromatic, polyphenyl carboxylic acids, as Langmuir monolayers at the air/water interface, has been investigated by means of surface pressure and electric surface potential measurements upon film compression. The monolayer characteristics of the basic compound, a symmetrical triphenylbenzene (5'-phenyl-m-terphenyl) ring with a carboxylic group at the 4 position (namely 5'-phenyl-1,1' : 3',1"-terphenyl-4-carboxylic acid), are compared with those of its derivatives containing hydrophilic (nitro) or hydrophobic (phenyl) substituents. The nature of the substituent as well as its position (2' or 4') has a profound influence on the monolayer properties. The results are discussed in view of molecular orientation deduced from values of effective dipole moments. Copyright 2001 Academic Press.     

Equilibrium, Kinetics, Diffusion and Self-Association of Proteins at Membrane Surfaces: Measurement by Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence Microscopy

Abstract— The equilibrium, kinetics, diffusion and self-association of proteins at membrane/solution interfaces may deviate substantially from these processes in bulk solution. A set of methods for examining these phenomena combines substrate-supported planar model membranes and the use of evanescent illumination with laser-based, quantitative fluorescence microscopy. Measurement of the steady-state, surface-associated fluorescence can be used to examine the thermodynamic properties of proteins at membranes. When combined with fluorescence photobleaching recovery, this technique provides information about membrane-binding kinetics; and when combined with fluorescence pattern photobleaching recovery, measurement of the translational diffusion coefficients of proteins weakly bound to membranes is possible. The use of polarized evanescent illumination can provide information about the orientation distributions of adsorbed fluorophores. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy provides information about the self-association ( e.g. dimerization) of membrane-associated proteins.