Chemoselective silicification of synthetic peptides and polyamines

3D-Membrane Stacks on Supported Membranes Composed of Diatom Lipids Induced by Long-Chain Polyamines

Long-chain polyamines (LCPAs) are intimately involved in the biomineralization process of diatoms taking place in silica deposition vesicles being acidic compartments surrounded by a lipid bilayer. Here, we addressed the question whether and how LCPAs interact with lipid membranes composed of glycerophospholipids and glyceroglycolipids mimicking the membranes of diatoms and higher plants. Solid supported lipid bilayers and monolayers containing the three major components that are unique in diatoms and higher plants, i.e., monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG), digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG), and sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol (SQDG), were prepared by spreading small unilamellar vesicles. The integrity of the membranes was investigated by fluorescence microscopy and atomic force microscopy showing continuous flat bilayers and monolayers with small protrusions on top of the membrane. The addition of a synthetic polyamine composed of 13 amine groups separated by a propyl spacer (C3N13) results in flat but three-dimensional membrane stacks within minutes. The membrane stacks are connected with the underlying membrane as verified by fluorescence recovery after photobleaching experiments. Membrane stack formation was found to be independent of the lipid composition; i.e., neither glyceroglycolipids nor negatively charged lipids were required. However, the formation process was strongly dependent on the chain length of the polyamine. Whereas short polyamines such as the naturally occurring spermidine, spermine, and the synthetic polyamines C3N4 and C3N5 do not induce stack formation, those containing seven and more amine groups (C3N7, C3N13, and C3N18) do form membrane stacks. The observed stack formation might have implications for the stability and expansion of the silica deposition vesicle during valve and girdle band formation in diatoms.

Chemical bath deposition of textured and compact zinc oxide thin films on vinyl-terminated polystyrene brushes

In this study we investigated the influence of an organic polystyrene brush on the deposition of ZnO thin films under moderate conditions. On a non-modified SiO x surface, island growth is observed, whereas the polymer brush induces homogeneous film growth. A chemical modification of the polystyrene brushes during the mineralization process occurs, which enables stronger interaction between the then polar template and polar ZnO crystallites in solution. This may lead to oriented attachment of the crystallites so that the observed (002) texture arises. Characterization of the templates and the resulting ZnO films were performed with ζ-potential and contact angle measurements as well as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Infrared spectroscopy (IR) measurements were used to investigate the polystyrene brushes before and after modification.

Synthesis and NMR analysis of 13C and 15N-labeled long-chain polyamines (LCPAs)

Site specific isotope labels in long-chain polyamines (LCPAs) for the NMR analysis of bioinspired silica nanocomposites.