Atomic force microscopy: seeing molecules of lipid and immunoglobulin

1991 ◽  
Vol 37 (9) ◽  
pp. 1497-1501 ◽  
Author(s):  
H G Hansma ◽  
A L Weisenhorn ◽  
A B Edmundson ◽  
H E Gaub ◽  
P K Hansma

Abstract The atomic force microscope (AFM) can image individual molecules by raster-scanning a sharp tip over a surface. In this paper we present molecular-resolution images of immunoglobulin M (IgM) and of ultraviolet light-polymerized films of the lipid dimethyl-bis(pentacosadiynoyloxyethyl) ammonium bromide ("BRONCO"). The polar head groups of individual lipid molecules can be resolved on the surface of this and other lipid films. These lipid films also provide a good substrate for AFM imaging of DNA and of other molecules such as antibodies. Because the AFM scans surfaces, it is most often successful at imaging either molecules that can form an array on a surface or molecules that are quite firmly attached to a surface. The ability of the AFM to operate under water, buffers, and other liquids makes it possible to study biological molecules under conditions in which they are physiologically active. Imaging of the actual molecular process of fibrin polymerization shows the potential of the AFM for studying biological processes. In the six years since its invention, the AFM has excited much interest and has imaged molecules in a wide range of systems.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin P. A. Gabriele ◽  
Craig J. Williams ◽  
Douglas Stauffer ◽  
Brian Derby ◽  
Aurora J. Cruz-Cabeza

<div> <div> <div> <p>Single crystals of aspirin form I were cleaved and indented on their dominant face. Upon inspection, it was possible to observe strongly anisotropic shallow lateral cracks due to the extreme low surface roughness after cleavage. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) imaging showed spalling fractures nucleating from the indent corners, forming terraces with a height of one or two interplanar spacings d100. The formation of such spalling fractures in aspirin was rationalised using basic calculations of attachment energies, showing how (100) layers are poorly bonded when compared to their relatively higher intralayer bonding. An attempt at explaining the preferential propagation of these fractures along the [010] direction is discussed. </p> </div> </div> </div>


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin P. A. Gabriele ◽  
Craig J. Williams ◽  
Douglas Stauffer ◽  
Brian Derby ◽  
Aurora J. Cruz-Cabeza

<div> <div> <div> <p>Single crystals of aspirin form I were cleaved and indented on their dominant face. Upon inspection, it was possible to observe strongly anisotropic shallow lateral cracks due to the extreme low surface roughness after cleavage. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) imaging showed spalling fractures nucleating from the indent corners, forming terraces with a height of one or two interplanar spacings d100. The formation of such spalling fractures in aspirin was rationalised using basic calculations of attachment energies, showing how (100) layers are poorly bonded when compared to their relatively higher intralayer bonding. An attempt at explaining the preferential propagation of these fractures along the [010] direction is discussed. </p> </div> </div> </div>


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Lyonnais ◽  
Mathilde Hénaut ◽  
Aymeric Neyret ◽  
Peggy Merida ◽  
Chantal Cazevieille ◽  
...  

AbstractSARS-CoV-2 is an enveloped virus responsible for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Here, single viruses were analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM) operating directly in a level 3 biosafety (BSL3) facility, which appeared as a fast and powerful method to assess at the nanoscale level and in 3D infectious virus morphology in its native conformation, or upon inactivation treatments. AFM imaging reveals structurally intact infectious and inactivated SARS-CoV-2 upon low concentration of formaldehyde treatment. This protocol combining AFM and plaque assays allows the preparation of intact inactivated SARS-CoV-2 particles for safe use of samples out of level 3 laboratory to accelerate researches against the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, we illustrate how adapted BSL3-AFM is a remarkable toolbox for rapid and direct virus analysis based on nanoscale morphology.


FEBS Letters ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 588 (17) ◽  
pp. 2874-2880 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dilshan Balasuriya ◽  
Shyam Srivats ◽  
Ruth D. Murrell-Lagnado ◽  
J. Michael Edwardson

2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 1358-1363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Massimo Santacroce ◽  
Federica Daniele ◽  
Andrea Cremona ◽  
Diletta Scaccabarozzi ◽  
Michela Castagna ◽  
...  

AbstractXenopus laevis oocytes are an interesting model for the study of many developmental mechanisms because of their dimensions and the ease with which they can be manipulated. In addition, they are widely employed systems for the expression and functional study of heterologous proteins, which can be expressed with high efficiency on their plasma membrane. Here we applied atomic force microscopy (AFM) to the study of the plasma membrane of X. laevis oocytes. In particular, we developed and optimized a new sample preparation protocol, based on the purification of plasma membranes by ultracentrifugation on a sucrose gradient, to perform a high-resolution AFM imaging of X. laevis oocyte plasma membrane in physiological-like conditions. Reproducible AFM topographs allowed visualization and dimensional characterization of membrane patches, whose height corresponds to a single lipid bilayer, as well as the presence of nanometer structures embedded in the plasma membrane and identified as native membrane proteins. The described method appears to be an applicable tool for performing high-resolution AFM imaging of X. laevis oocyte plasma membrane in a physiological-like environment, thus opening promising perspectives for studying in situ cloned membrane proteins of relevant biomedical/pharmacological interest expressed in this biological system.


2012 ◽  
Vol 1424 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Mamun ◽  
A. H. Farha ◽  
Y. Ufuktepe ◽  
H. E. Elsayed-Ali ◽  
A. A. Elmustafa

ABSTRACTNanomechanical and structural properties of pulsed laser deposited niobium nitride thin films were investigated using X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and nanoindentation. NbN film reveals cubic δ-NbN structure with the corresponding diffraction peaks from the (111), (200), and (220) planes. The NbN thin films depict highly granular structure, with a wide range of grain sizes that range from 15-40 nm with an average surface roughness of 6 nm. The average modulus of the film is 420±60 GPa, whereas for the substrate the average modulus is 180 GPa, which is considered higher than the average modulus for Si reported in the literature due to pile-up. The hardness of the film increases from an average of 12 GPa for deep indents (Si substrate) measured using XP CSM and load control (LC) modes to an average of 25 GPa measured using the DCM II head in CSM and LC modules. The average hardness of the Si substrate is 12 GPa.


2013 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 385-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kiracofe ◽  
Arvind Raman ◽  
Dalia Yablon

One of the key goals in atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging is to enhance material property contrast with high resolution. Bimodal AFM, where two eigenmodes are simultaneously excited, confers significant advantages over conventional single-frequency tapping mode AFM due to its ability to provide contrast between regions with different material properties under gentle imaging conditions. Bimodal AFM traditionally uses the first two eigenmodes of the AFM cantilever. In this work, the authors explore the use of higher eigenmodes in bimodal AFM (e.g., exciting the first and fourth eigenmodes). It is found that such operation leads to interesting contrast reversals compared to traditional bimodal AFM. A series of experiments and numerical simulations shows that the primary cause of the contrast reversals is not the choice of eigenmode itself (e.g., second versus fourth), but rather the relative kinetic energy between the higher eigenmode and the first eigenmode. This leads to the identification of three distinct imaging regimes in bimodal AFM. This result, which is applicable even to traditional bimodal AFM, should allow researchers to choose cantilever and operating parameters in a more rational manner in order to optimize resolution and contrast during nanoscale imaging of materials.


1999 ◽  
Vol 570 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Venables ◽  
G. Haas ◽  
H. Brune ◽  
J.H. Harding

ABSTRACTNucleation and growth of metal clusters at defect sites is discussed in terms of rate equation models, which are applied to the cases of Pd and Ag on MgO(001) and NaCl(001) surfaces. Pd/MgO has been studied experimentally by variable temperature atomic force microscopy (AFM). The island density of Pd on Ar-cleaved surfaces was determined in-situ by AFM for a wide range of deposition temperature and flux, and stays constant over a remarkably wide range of parameters; for a particular flux, this plateau extends from 200 K ≤ T ≤ 600 K, but at higher temperatures the density decreases. The range of energies for defect trapping, adsorption, surface diffusion and pair binding are deduced, and compared with earlier data for Ag on NaCl, and with recent calculations for these metals on both NaCl and MgO


2004 ◽  
Vol 10 (S02) ◽  
pp. 1094-1095
Author(s):  
David P. Allison ◽  
Claretta J. Sullivan ◽  
Jennifer L. Morrell ◽  
Peter R. Hoyt ◽  
Mitchel J. Doktycz

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2004 in Savannah, Georgia, USA, August 1–5, 2004.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Rafiul Shihab ◽  
Tasmirul Jalil ◽  
Burak Gulsacan ◽  
Matteo Aureli ◽  
Ryan Tung

Abstract Numerous nanometrology techniques concerned with probing a wide range of frequency dependent properties would benefit from a cantilevered sensor with tunable natural frequencies. In this work, we propose a method to arbitrarily tune the stiffness and natural frequencies of a microplate sensor for atomic force microscope applications, thereby allowing resonance amplification at a broad range of frequencies. This method is predicated on the principle of curvature-based stiffening. A macroscale experiment is conducted to verify the feasibility of the method. Next, a microscale finite element analysis is conducted on a proof-of-concept device. We show that both the stiffness and various natural frequencies of the device can be highly controlled through applied transverse curvature. Dynamic phenomena encountered in the method, such as eigenvalue curve veering, are discussed and methods are presented to accommodate these phenomena. We believe that this study will facilitate the development of future curvature-based microscale sensors for atomic force microscopy applications.


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