Elastic modulus of suspended purple membrane measured by atomic force microscopy |
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Authors: | Ari M Siitonen Koji Sumitomo Chandra S Ramanujan Nahoko Kasai John F Ryan |
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Institution: | a NTT Basic Research Laboratories, NTT Corporation, 3-1 Morinosato-Wakamiya, Atsugi, Kanagawa 243-0198, Japan b Bionanotechnology IRC, Clarendon Laboratory, University of Oxford, Oxfordshire OX1 3PU, United Kingdom |
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Abstract: | We have probed the mechanical properties of purple membrane (PM) in a physiological environment using the atomic force microscope (AFM). By suspending PM over nano-trenches, the elastic properties of PM can be evaluated free from the interaction with the substrate. Force-displacement curves were obtained on the suspended membrane and the data was compared to that of a simple model of a thin film over a trench. By fitting the data to the model, the elastic modulus of PM was estimated to be 8 MPa. When the membrane is repeatedly indented, we observed a change in the force-distance data consistent with damage to the two-dimensional crystal of PM. In this paper we demonstrate that the AFM allows us to evaluate the mechanics of biological membranes in their native conditions. |
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Keywords: | Nanobiotechnology Scanning probe microscopy Membrane protein Elastic modulus |
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