Self-Assembly of Virus Particles on Flat Surfaces via Controlled Evaporation † (original) (raw)

Nanoparticle-Templated Assembly of Viral Protein Cages

Nano Letters, 2006

Self-assembly of regular protein surfaces around nanoparticle templates provides a new class of hybrid biomaterials with potential applications in medical imaging and in bioanalytical sensing. We report here the first example of efficiently self-assembled virus-like particles (VLPs) having a brome mosaic virus protein coat and a functionalized gold core. The present study indicates that functionalized gold particles can initiate VLP assembly by mimicking the electrostatic behavior of the nucleic acid component of the native virus. These VLP constructs are symmetric, with the protein stoichiometry and packaging properties indicating similarity to the icosahedral packing of the capsid. Moreover, a pH-induced swelling transition of the VLPs is observed, in direct analogy to the native virus.

Colloidal Surface Assemblies: Nanotechnology Meets Bioinspiration

Advanced Functional Materials, 2013

This Feature Article discusses two biomimetic aspects of functional particle surface assembly: the fabrication of biologically inspired structures from particles and the arrangement of particles on biomimetic templates. The fi rst part discusses the creation of primary patterns by convective assembly and adsorption of particles that can be modifi ed by a combination of etching and growth steps. Resulting structures mimic moth eyes, Lotus leaves, and the Gecko's adhesive structures, for example. The second part focusses on template assisted self-assembly (TASA) of particles. Herein, biological examples are inspiring in terms of structure formation related processes, rather than in terms of functionality. Template formation is a major bottleneck TASA. It is illustrated how bio-inspired wrinkling processes help overcoming this problem and can be employed for forming highly ordered functional nanoparticle assemblies.

An engineered virus as a scaffold for three-dimensional self-assembly on the nanoscale

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany), 2005

Significant challenges exist in assembling and interconnecting the building blocks of a nanoscale device and being able to electronically address or measure responses at the molecular level. Self-assembly is one of the few practical strategies for making ensembles of nanostructures and will therefore be an essential part of nanotechnology. In order to generate complex structures through self-assembly, it is essential to develop methods by which different components in solution can come together in an ordered fashion. One approach to achieve ordered self-assembly on the nanoscale is to use biomolecules such as DNA as scaffolds for directed assembly because of the specificity and versatility they provide. Although several groups have demonstrated the usefulness of this approach, building ordered three-dimensional (3D) structures with DNA is difficult, because of the 1D nature of the scaffold. Using viruses as nanoscale scaffolds for devices offers the promise of exquisite control

Size-Dependent Self-Organization of Colloidal Particles on Chemically Patterned Surfaces

Langmuir, 2006

A study of the self-organization of colloidal particles during the evaporation of particle solutions on chemically patterned surfaces is presented. On a surface with hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions, colloidal particles form compact structures on the hydrophilic sites. When a colloidal solution containing a mixture of particles with a variation in size is used, the number density of each type of particle deposited on the hydrophilic islands after evaporation decreases with increasing particle size. This makes it possible to produce a concentration gradient of the particles on islands of different sizes. It is shown that this technique could allow for particle separation.

Plant virus directed fabrication of nanoscale materials and devices

Virology, 2015

Bottom-up self-assembly methods in which individual molecular components self-organize to form functional nanoscale patterns are of long-standing interest in the field of materials sciences. Such self-assembly processes are the hallmark of biology where complex macromolecules with defined functions assemble from smaller molecular components. In particular, plant virus-derived nanoparticles (PVNs) have drawn considerable attention for their unique self-assembly architectures and functionalities that can be harnessed to produce new materials for industrial and biomedical applications. In particular, PVNs provide simple systems to model and assemble nanoscale particles of uniform size and shape that can be modified through molecularly defined chemical and genetic alterations. Furthermore, PVNs bring the added potential to "farm" such bio-nanomaterials on an industrial scale, providing a renewable and environmentally sustainable means for the production of nano-materials. This...

Self-assembly of functionalized spherical nanoparticles on chemically patterned microstructures

Nanotechnology, 2005

The production of hierarchical nanopatterns (using a top-down microfabrication approach combined with a subsequent bottom-up self-assembly process) will be an important tool in many research areas. We report the fabrication of silica nanoparticle arrays on lithographically pre-patterned substrates suitable for applications in the field of nanobiotechnology. Two different approaches to reach this goal are presented and discussed: in the first approach, we use capillary forces to self-assemble silica nanoparticles on a wettability contrast pattern by controlled drying and evaporation. This allows the efficient patterning of a variety of nanoparticle systems and-under certain conditions-leads to the formation of novel branched structures of colloidal lines, that might help to elucidate the formation process of these nanoparticle arrays. The second approach uses a recently developed chemical patterning method that allows for the selective immobilization of functionalized sub-100 nm particles at distinct locations on the surface. In addition, it is shown how these nanocolloidal micro-arrays offer the potential to increase the sensitivity of existing biosensing devices. The well-defined surface chemistry (of particle and substrate) and the increased surface area at the microspots, where the nanoparticles self-assemble, make this patterning method an interesting candidate for micro-array biosensing.

Convective Assembly of 2D Lattices of Virus-like Particles Visualized by In-Situ Grazing-Incidence Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering

2011

materials presents several distinct advantages over the use of 'synthetic' nanoparticles. These include the nearly perfect monodispersity of size and shape, convenience of synthesis from laboratory culture, and most importantly, the ability to The rapid assembly of icosohedral virus-like particles (VLPs) into highly ordered (domain size > 600 nm), oriented 2D superlattices directly onto a solid substrate using convective coating is demonstrated. In-situ grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) is used to follow the self-assembly process in real time to characterize the mechanism of superlattice formation, with the ultimate goal of tailoring fi lm deposition conditions to optimize long-range order. From water, GISAXS data are consistent with a transport-limited assembly process where convective fl ow directs assembly of VLPs into a lattice oriented with respect to the water drying line. Addition of a nonvolatile solvent (glycerol) modifi ed this assembly pathway, resulting in nonoriented superlattices with improved long-range order. Modifi cation of electrostatic conditions (solution ionic strength, substrate charge) also alters assembly behavior; however, a comparison of in-situ assembly data between VLPs derived from the bacteriophages MS2 and Q β show that this assembly process is not fully described by a simple Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek model alone.