Interaction of aluminium hydrolytic species with biomolecules

In this contribution the formation of bioinorganic assemblies between the basic globular protein lysozyme and aqueous aluminium species including Al 13 -mer, Al 30 -mer and colloidal aluminium hydroxide have been explored and comparison made to previous interaction studies performed with bovine serum albumin (BSA). Specific charge-stabilised bioinorganic assemblies involving aluminium species and lysozyme were observed to form in contrast to the gel like structures formed on interaction of BSA with aluminium species. As demonstrated by infrared spectroscopy (structural assignment, 2D correlation spectroscopy), interactions mostly involve acidic surface groups of the proteins (Asp, Glu), with strong complexation and deprotonation in the case of BSA interacting with Al 13 and Al 30 and through hydrogen bonding for lysozyme interacting with the same species and aluminium hydroxide particles interacting with both biomolecules

Label-Free Detection of Escherichia coli Based on Thermal Transport through Surface Imprinted Polymers

This work focuses on the development of a label-free biomimetic sensor for the specific and selective detection of bacteria. The platform relies on the rebinding of bacteria to synthetic cell receptors, made by surface imprinting of polyurethane-coated aluminum chips. The heat-transfer resistance (Rth) of these so-called surface imprinted polymers (SIPs) was analyzed in time using the heat-transfer method (HTM). Rebinding of target bacteria to the synthetic receptor led to a measurable increase in thermal resistance at the solid–liquid interface. Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were used as model organisms for several proof-of-principle experiments, demonstrating the potential of the proposed platform for point-of-care bacterial testing. The results of these experiments indicate that the sensor is able to selectively detect bacterial rebinding to the SIP surface, distinguishing between dead and living E. coli cells on one hand and between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria on the other hand (E. coli and S. aureus). In addition, the sensor was capable of quantifying the number of bacteria in a given sample, enabling detection at relatively low concentrations (104 CFU mL–1 range). As a first proof-of-application, the sensor was exposed to a mixed bacterial solution containing only a small amount (1%) of the target bacteria. The sample was able to detect this trace amount by using a simple gradual enrichment strategy

An overview of the fundamentals of the chemistry of silica with relevance to biosilicification and technological advances

Biomineral formation is widespread in Nature and occurs in bacteria, single-celled protists, plants, invertebrates and vertebrates. Minerals formed in the biological environment often show unusual physical properties (e.g., strength, degree of hydration) and often have structures that exhibit order on many length scales. Biosilica, found in single cell organisms through to higher plants and primitive animals (sponges) is formed from an environment that is undersaturated with respect to silicon and under conditions of around neutral pH and low temperature ca. 4–40 °C. Formation of the mineral may occur intra- or extra-cellularly and specific biochemical locations for mineral deposition that include lipids, proteins and carbohydrates are known. In most cases the formation of the mineral phase is linked to cellular processes, understanding of which could lead to the design of new materials for biomedical, optical and other applications. In this contribution we describe the aqueous chemistry of silica, from uncondensed monomer through to colloidal particles and three dimensional structures, relevant to the environment from which the biomineral forms. We then describe the chemistry of silica formation from alkoxides such as tetraethoxysilane as this and other silanes have been used to study the chemistry of silica formation using silicatein and such precursors are often used in the preparation of silicas for technological applications. The focus of this article is on the methods, experimental and computational by which the process of silica formation can be studied with emphasis on speciation. [Image: see text