Biomimetic Membrane Characterization using Neutron Scattering


Mathias Löschea

Johns Hopkins University, Dept. of Biophysics, Baltimore, MD, and CNBT consortium at the NIST Center for Neutron Research, Gaithersburg, MD, U.S.A.

e-mail: mathias.loesche@nist.gov

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A new neutron spectrometer – the Advanced Neutron Reflectometer and Diffractometer AND/R – has been recently commissioned by the Cold Neutrons in Biology and Technology (CNBT) research consortium, a U.S. university/government lab research partnership located at the NIST Center for Neutron Research. This new instrument is optimized to investigate specifically problems in membrane biology and biotechnology. These are mostly concerned with dynamic, structurally disordered systems. Thus, MD simulations, solution scattering and NMR are an integral part of the CNBT mission. Investigations in the first year of AND/R operation include studies of surface-grafted DNA, chain interdiffusion within polyelectrolyte multilayers, and high-resolution structures of hydrated lipid membranes. This contribution will focus on studies of surface-tethered membrane structures for the development of robust sensing applications.

Coworkers on the reported research:
Duncan J. McGillivray, Johns Hopkins Univ./NIST; John J. Kasianowicz, David J. Vanderah and John T. Woodward, NIST; Ingo Köper, MPI f. Polymer Research; Gintaras Valicius, Gedimino Technical Univ. at Vilnius

Research partners within the CNBT consortium:
Stephen H. White and Douglas J. Tobias, UC Irvine; J. Kent Blasie, Univ. Pennsylvania; Huey W. Huang, Rice Univ.; Michael E. Paulaitis, Ohio State Univ./Johns Hopkins Univ.; John F. Nagle, Carnegie Mellon Univ.; Thomas J. McIntosh, Duke Univ.; Anne Plant, Susan Krueger, Charles F. Majkrzak, NIST; Klaus Gawrisch, NIH