蛋白质分子的电学性质、结构与生物活性

Correlation Between Molecular Structure,Electric Property and Biological Activity of Protein

在生命体内,蛋白质通常固着在膜载体上与其它分子相互作用而参与生命活动,所以承受各向异性压力的蛋白质是其存在和功能化的基本形式。设计和研究蛋白质分子在各向异性压力下的分子结构、力学性质和电学/电化学性质不仅对深入理解蛋白质的生物活性至关重要,而且有助于促进蛋白质分子在分子电子器件中的应用。本文综述了利用导电原子力显微镜对蛋白质分子的电学性质的研究进展。在不同的探针压力下,蛋白质分子发生不同程度的形变,表现了不同的电子输运机理。由此可以进一步推测蛋白质分子的生物活性。

In biological processes, many proteins are located in biomembrane, performing their biological activity, from respiration to energy conversion in vivo. As a result, the basic existing and functional form of protein is the one that can bear anisotropic stress. To devise and study the structure, mechanical and electrical/electrochemical properties of protein under anisotropic stress not only play an important role in understanding their bioactivity, but can promote application of proteins in bioelectronic devices. The studies on protein electric properties by using a conducting atomic force microscope are reviewed. Under various anisotropic compressions, the protein molecule is subjected to different reconstructions, showing different electronic transportation behavior. On basis of the experimental observation, one can estimate the biological activity of the protein molecules.