Adsorption of Glycine on TiO2 in Water from On-the-fly Free-Energy Calculations and In Situ Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy

We report here an experimental-computational study of hydrated TiO2 anatase nanoparticles interacting with glycine, where we obtain quantitative agreement of the measured adsorption free energies. Ab initio simulations are performed within the tight binding and density functional theory in combination with enhanced free-energy sampling techniques, which exploit the thermodynamic integration of the unbiased mean forces collected on-the-fly along the molecular dynamics trajectories. The experiments adopt a new and efficient setup for electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements based on portable screen-printed gold electrodes, which allows fast and in situ signal assessment. The measured adsorption free energy is -30 kJ/mol (both from experiment and calculation), with preferential interaction of the charged NH3+ group which strongly adsorbs on the TiO2 bridging oxygens. This highlights the importance of the terminal amino groups in the adsorption mechanism of amino acids on hydrated metal oxides. The excellent agreement between computation and experiment for this amino acid opens the doors to the exploration of the interaction free energies for other moderately complex bionano systems.

Gravity-Driven Separation for Enrichment of Rare Earth Elements Using Lanthanide Binding Peptide-Immobilized Resin

Rare Earth Elements (REEs) constitute indispensable raw materials and are employed in a diverse range of devices, including but not limited to smartphones, electric vehicles, and clean energy technologies. While there is an increase in demand for these elements, there is a global supply challenge due to limited availability and geopolitical factors affecting their procurement. A crucial step in manufacturing these devices involves utilizing highly pure REEs, often obtained through complex and nonsustainable processes. These processes are vital in isolating individual REEs from mixtures containing non-REEs and other REEs. There exists an urgent requirement to explore alternative techniques that enable the selective recovery of REEs through more energy-efficient processes. To overcome the limitations mentioned above, we developed a microbead-based technology featuring immobilized lanthanide binding peptides (LBPs) for the selective adsorption of REEs. This technology does not require the utilization of external stimuli but uses gravity-based separation processes to separate the bound REE from the unbound REE. We demonstrate this technology's potential by enriching two relevant REEs (Europium and Terbium). Additionally, we propose a mechanism whereby REEs bind selectively to a particular LBP, leveraging the distinctive physicochemical characteristics of both the REE and the LBP. Moreover, these LBPs exhibit no binding affinity toward other frequently encountered industrial ions. Finally, we demonstrate the recovery of REEs through a change in system conditions and assess the reusability of the microbeads for subsequent adsorption cycles. We anticipate that this approach will address the challenges of REE recovery and demonstrate the potential of biomolecular strategies in advancing sustainable resource management.

Solid-Binding Proteins: Bridging Synthesis, Assembly, and Function in Hybrid and Hierarchical Materials Fabrication

There is considerable interest in the development of hybrid organic-inorganic materials because of the potential for harvesting the unique capabilities that each system has to offer. Proteins are an especially attractive organic component owing to the high amount of chemical information encoded in their amino acid sequence, their amenability to molecular and computational (re)design, and the many structures and functions they specify. Genetic installation of solid-binding peptides (SBPs) within protein frameworks affords control over the position and orientation of adhesive and morphogenetic segments, and a path toward predictive synthesis and assembly of functional materials and devices, all while harnessing the built-in properties of the host scaffold. Here, we review the current understanding of the mechanisms through which SBPs bind to technologically relevant interfaces, with an emphasis on the variables that influence the process, and highlight the last decade of progress in the use of solid-binding proteins for hybrid and hierarchical materials synthesis.

Phase Control of Nanocrystalline Inclusions in Bioprecipitated Titania with a Panel of Mutant Silica-Binding Proteins

The biomimetic route to inorganic synthesis presents an opportunity to produce complex materials with superior properties under ambient conditions and from nontoxic precursors. While there has been significant progress in using solid-binding peptides (SBPs), proteins, and organisms to produce a variety of inorganic and hybrid structures, it has been more challenging to understand the interplay of solution conditions and solid-binding peptide (SBP) sequence, structure, and self-association on synthetic outcomes. Here, we show that fusing the Car9 silica-binding peptide-but not the silaffin-derived R5 peptide-to superfolder green fluorescent protein (sfGFP) enhances the ability of micromolar concentrations of protein to induce rapid titania (TiO₂) precipitation from acidified solutions of tetrakis(di-lactato)-oxo-titanate (TiBALDH). TiO₂ is produced stoichiometrically and although predominantly amorphous, contains nanosized anatase and monoclinic TiO₂(B) inclusions. Remarkably, the phase of these nanocrystallites can be tuned from about 80% TiO₂(B) to about 65% anatase by using Car9 mutants impaired in their ability to drive the formation of higher-order sfGFP-Car9 oligomers. Our results suggest that the presentation of multiple basic side chains in an extended plane formed by SBP self-association is critical to template the formation of monoclinic crystallites and underscore the subtle influence that single or dual substitutions in dodecameric SBPs can exert on the yield and crystallinity of biomineralized inorganics.

Bioprospecting solid binding polypeptides for lithium ion battery cathode materials

Biotemplating presents a promising approach to improve the performance of inorganic materials via specific control over morphology, crystal structure, and the size of particles during synthesis and assembly. Among other biotemplates, solid binding polypeptides (SBPs) isolated for the material of interest provide high binding affinity and selectivity due to distinct combinations of functional groups found in amino acids. Nanomaterials assembled and synthesized with SBPs have found widespread applications from drug delivery to catalysis and energy storage due to their improved properties. In this study, the authors describe the identification of SBPs for binding to Li-ion battery cathode materials LiCoPO₄, LiMn_1.5Ni_0.5O₄, and LiMn₂O₄, which all have potential for improvement toward their theoretical values. The binding affinity of isolated peptides was assessed via phage binding assays and confirmed with electron microscopy in order to select for potential biotemplates. The authors demonstrate ten binding peptides for each material and analyze the sequences for enrichment in specific amino acids toward each structure (olivine and spinel oxide), as well as the test for specificity of selected sequences. In further studies, the authors believe that the isolated SBPs will serve as a template for synthesis and aid in assembly of cathode materials resulting in improved electrochemical properties for Li-ion batteries.

Bombyx mori silk/titania/gold hybrid materials for photocatalytic water splitting: combining renewable raw materials with clean fuels

The synthesis, structure, and photocatalytic water splitting performance of two new titania (TiO2)/gold(Au)/Bombyx mori silk hybrid materials are reported. All materials are monoliths with diameters of up to ca. 4.5 cm. The materials are macroscopically homogeneous and porous with surface areas between 170 and 210 m2/g. The diameter of the TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) - mainly anatase with a minor fraction of brookite - and the Au NPs are on the order of 5 and 7-18 nm, respectively. Addition of poly(ethylene oxide) to the reaction mixture enables pore size tuning, thus providing access to different materials with different photocatalytic activities. Water splitting experiments using a sunlight simulator and a Xe lamp show that the new hybrid materials are effective water splitting catalysts and produce up to 30 mmol of hydrogen per 24 h. Overall the article demonstrates that the combination of a renewable and robust scaffold such as B. mori silk with a photoactive material provides a promising approach to new monolithic photocatalysts that can easily be recycled and show great potential for application in lightweight devices for green fuel production.

Selection of a novel peptide aptamer with high affinity for TiO2-nanoparticle through a direct electroporation with TiO2-binding phage complexes

We have developed an easy and rapid screening method of peptide aptamers with high affinity for a target material TiO₂ using M13 phage-display and panning procedure. In a selection step, the phage-substrate complexes and Escherichia coli cells were directly applied by electric pulse for electroporation, without separating the objective phages from the TiO₂ nanoparticles. Using this simple and rapid method, we obtained a novel peptide aptamer (named ST-1 with the sequence AYPQKFNNNFMS) with highly strong binding activity for TiO₂. A cage-shaped protein fused with both ST-1 and an available carbon nanotube-affinity peptide was designed and produced in E. coli. The multi-functional supraprotein could efficiently mineralize a titanium-compound around the surface of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), indicating that the ST-1 is valuable in the fabrication of nano-composite materials with titanium-compounds. The structural analysis of ST-1 variants indicated the importance of the N-terminal region (as a motif of AXPQKX₆S) of the aptamer in the TiO₂-binding activity.

Aqueous Peptide-TiO2 Interfaces: Isoenergetic Binding via Either Entropically or Enthalpically Driven Mechanisms

A major barrier to the systematic improvement of biomimetic peptide-mediated strategies for the controlled growth of inorganic nanomaterials in environmentally benign conditions lies in the lack of clear conceptual connections between the sequence of the peptide and its surface binding affinity, with binding being facilitated by noncovalent interactions. Peptide conformation, both in the adsorbed and in the nonadsorbed state, is the key relationship that connects peptide-materials binding with peptide sequence. Here, we combine experimental peptide-titania binding characterization with state-of-the-art conformational sampling via molecular simulations to elucidate these structure/binding relationships for two very different titania-binding peptide sequences. The two sequences (Ti-1, QPYLFATDSLIK; Ti-2, GHTHYHAVRTQT) differ in their overall hydropathy, yet via quartz-crystal microbalance measurements and predictions from molecular simulations, we show these sequences both support very similar, strong titania-binding affinities. Our molecular simulations reveal that the two sequences exhibit profoundly different modes of surface binding, with Ti-1 acting as an entropically driven binder while Ti-2 behaves as an enthalpically driven binder. The integrated approach presented here provides a rational basis for peptide sequence engineering to achieve the in situ growth and organization of titania nanostructures in aqueous media and for the design of sequences suitable for a range of technological applications that involve the interface between titania and biomolecules.

Correlating single-molecule and ensemble-average measurements of peptide adsorption onto different inorganic materials

The coating of solid-binding peptides (SBPs) on inorganic material surfaces holds significant potential for improved surface functionalization at nano-bio interfaces. In most related studies, the goal has been to engineer peptides with selective and high binding affinity for a target material. The role of the material substrate itself in modulating the adsorption behavior of a peptide molecule remains less explored and there are few studies that compare the interaction of one peptide with different inorganic substrates. Herein, using a combination of two experimental techniques, we investigated the adsorption of a 16 amino acid-long random coil peptide to various inorganic substrates - gold, silicon oxide, titanium oxide and aluminum oxide. Quartz crystal microbalance-dissipation (QCM-D) experiments were performed in order to measure the peptide binding affinity for inorganic solid supports at the ensemble average level, and atomic force microscopy (AFM) experiments were conducted in order to determine the adhesion force of a single peptide molecule. A positive trend was observed between the total mass uptake of attached peptide and the single-molecule adhesion force on each substrate. Peptide affinity for gold was appreciably greater than for the oxide substrates. Collectively, the results obtained in this study offer insight into the ways in which inorganic materials can differentially influence and modulate the adhesion of SBPs.

Engineered Chimeric Peptides as Antimicrobial Surface Coating Agents toward Infection-Free Implants

Prevention of bacterial colonization and consequent biofilm formation remains a major challenge in implantable medical devices. Implant-associated infections are not only a major cause of implant failures but also their conventional treatment with antibiotics brings further complications due to the escalation in multidrug resistance to a variety of bacterial species. Owing to their unique properties, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have gained significant attention as effective agents to combat colonization of microorganisms. These peptides have been shown to exhibit a wide spectrum of activities with specificity to a target cell while having a low tendency for developing bacterial resistance. Engineering biomaterial surfaces that feature AMP properties, therefore, offer a promising approach to prevent implant infections. Here, we engineered a chimeric peptide with bifunctionality that both forms a robust solid-surface coating while presenting antimicrobial property. The individual domains of the chimeric peptides were evaluated for their solid-binding kinetics to titanium substrate as well as for their antimicrobial properties in solution. The antimicrobial efficacy of the chimeric peptide on the implant material was evaluated in vitro against infection by a variety of bacteria, including Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus. epidermidis, and Escherichia coli, which are commonly found in oral and orthopedic implant related surgeries. Our results demonstrate significant improvement in reducing bacterial colonization onto titanium surfaces below the detectable limit. Engineered chimeric peptides with freely displayed antimicrobial domains could be a potential solution for developing infection-free surfaces by engineering implant interfaces with highly reduced bacterial colonization property.

Phage display selected magnetite interacting Adhirons for shape controlled nanoparticle synthesis

Adhirons are robust, well expressing, peptide display scaffold proteins, developed as an effective alternative to traditional antibody binding proteins for highly specific molecular recognition applications. This paper reports for the first time the use of these versatile proteins for material binding, and as tools for controlling material synthesis on the nanoscale. A phage library of Adhirons, each displaying two variable binding loops, was screened to identify specific proteins able to interact with [100] faces of cubic magnetite nanoparticles. The selected variable regions display a strong preference for basic residues such as lysine. Molecular dynamics simulations of amino acid adsorption onto a [100] magnetite surface provides a rationale for these interactions, with the lowest adsorption energy observed with lysine. These proteins direct the shape of the forming nanoparticles towards a cubic morphology in room temperature magnetite precipitation reactions, in stark contrast to the high temperature, harsh reaction conditions currently used to produce cubic nanoparticles. These effects demonstrate the utility of the selected Adhirons as novel magnetite mineralization control agents using ambient aqueous conditions. The approach we outline with artificial protein scaffolds has the potential to develop into a toolkit of novel additives for wider nanomaterial fabrication.

Binding affinities of amino acid analogues at the charged aqueous titania interface: implications for titania-binding peptides

Despite the extensive utilization of biomolecule-titania interfaces, biomolecular recognition and interactions at the aqueous titania interface remain far from being fully understood. Here, atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, in partnership with metadynamics, are used to calculate the free energy of adsorption of different amino acid side chain analogues at the negatively-charged aqueous rutile TiO2 (110) interface, under conditions corresponding with neutral pH. Our calculations predict that charged amino acid analogues have a relatively high affinity to the titania surface, with the arginine analogue predicted to be the strongest binder. Interactions between uncharged amino acid analogues and titania are found to be repulsive or weak at best. All of the residues that bound to the negatively-charged interface show a relatively stronger adsorption compared with the charge-neutral interface, including the negatively-charged analogue. Of the analogues that are found to bind to the titania surface, the rank ordering of the binding affinities is predicted to be "arginine" > "lysine" ≈ aspartic acid > "serine". This is the same ordering as was found previously for the charge-neutral aqueous titania interface. Our results show very good agreement with available experimental data and can provide a baseline for the interpretation of peptide-TiO2 adsorption data.

Biomolecular adsorption at aqueous silver interfaces: first-principles calculations, polarizable force-field simulations, and comparisons with gold

The molecular simulation of biomolecules adsorbed at noble metal interfaces can assist in the development of bionanotechnology applications. In line with advances in polarizable force fields for adsorption at aqueous gold interfaces, there is scope for developing a similar force field for silver. One way to accomplish this is via the generation of in vacuo adsorption energies calculated using first-principles approaches for a wide range of different but biologically relevant small molecules, including water. Here, we present such first-principles data for a comprehensive range of bio-organic molecules obtained from plane-wave density functional theory calculations using the vdW-DF functional. As reported previously for the gold force field, GolP-CHARMM (Wright, L. B.; Rodger, P. M.; Corni, S.; Walsh, T. R. GolP-CHARMM: first-principles based force-fields for the interaction of proteins with Au(111) and Au(100). J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2013, 9, 1616-1630), we have used these data to construct a a new force field, AgP-CHARMM, suitable for the simulation of biomolecules at the aqueous Ag(111) and Ag(100) interfaces. This force field is derived to be consistent with GolP-CHARMM such that adsorption on Ag and Au can be compared on an equal footing. Our force fields are used to evaluate the water overlayer stability on both silver and gold, finding good agreement with known behaviors. We also calculate and compare the structuring (spatial and orientational) of liquid water adsorbed at both silver and gold. Finally, we report the adsorption free energy of a range of amino acids at both the Au(111) and Ag(111) aqueous interfaces, calculated using metadynamics. Stronger adsorption on gold was noted in most cases, with the exception being the carboxylate group present in aspartic acid. Our findings also indicate differences in the binding free energy profile between silver and gold for some amino acids, notably for His and Arg. Our analysis suggests that the relatively stronger structuring of the first water layer on silver, relative to gold, could give rise to these differences.

Biological response on a titanium implant-grade surface functionalized with modular peptides

Titanium (Ti) and its alloys are among the most successful implantable materials for dental and orthopedic applications. The combination of excellent mechanical and corrosion resistance properties makes them highly desirable as endosseous implants that can withstand a demanding biomechanical environment. Yet, the success of the implant depends on its osteointegration, which is modulated by the biological reactions occurring at the interface of the implant. A recent development for improving biological responses on the Ti-implant surface has been the realization that bifunctional peptides can impart material binding specificity not only because of their molecular recognition of the inorganic material surface, but also through their self-assembly and ease of biological conjugation properties. To assess peptide-based functionalization on bioactivity, the present authors generated a set of peptides for implant-grade Ti, using cell surface display methods. Out of 60 unique peptides selected by this method, two of the strongest titanium binding peptides, TiBP1 and TiBP2, were further characterized for molecular structure and adsorption properties. These two peptides demonstrated unique, but similar molecular conformations different from that of a weak binder peptide, TiBP60. Adsorption measurements on a Ti surface revealed that their disassociation constants were 15-fold less than TiBP60. Their flexible and modular use in biological surface functionalization were demonstrated by conjugating them with an integrin recognizing peptide motif, RGDS. The functionalization of the Ti surface by the selected peptides significantly enhanced the bioactivity of osteoblast and fibroblast cells on implant-grade materials.

Nanotechnology Meets Biology: Peptide-based Methods for the Fabrication of Functional Materials

Nature exploits sustainable methods for the creation of inorganic materials on the nanoscale for a variety of applications. To achieve such capabilities, biomolecules such as peptides and proteins have been developed that recognize and bind the different compositions of materials. While a diverse set of materials binding sequences are present in the biosphere, biocombinatorial techniques have been used to rapidly identify peptides that facilitate the formation of new materials of technological importance. Interestingly, the binding motif of the peptides at the inorganic surface is likely to control the size, structure, composition, shape, and functionality of the final materials. In order to advance these intriguing new biomimetic approaches, a complete understanding of this biotic/abiotic interface is required. In this Perspective, we highlight recent advances in the biofunctionalization of nanoparticles with potential applications ranging from catalysis and energy storage to plasmonics and biosensing. We specifically focus on the physical characterization of the peptide-based surface from which specificity and activity are likely embedded.

Material binding peptides for nanotechnology

Remarkable progress has been made to date in the discovery of material binding peptides and their utilization in nanotechnology, which has brought new challenges and opportunities. Nowadays phage display is a versatile tool, important for the selection of ligands for proteins and peptides. This combinatorial approach has also been adapted over the past decade to select material-specific peptides. Screening and selection of such phage displayed material binding peptides has attracted great interest, in particular because of their use in nanotechnology. Phage display selected peptides are either synthesized independently or expressed on phage coat protein. Selected phage particles are subsequently utilized in the synthesis of nanoparticles, in the assembly of nanostructures on inorganic surfaces, and oriented protein immobilization as fusion partners of proteins. In this paper, we present an overview on the research conducted on this area. In this review we not only focus on the selection process, but also on molecular binding characterization and utilization of peptides as molecular linkers, molecular assemblers and material synthesizers.

Virus silicification under simulated hot spring conditions

Silicification of organisms in silica-depositing environments can impact both their ecology and their presence in the fossil record. Although microbes have been silicified under laboratory and environmental conditions, viruses have not. Bacteriophage T4 was successfully silicified under laboratory conditions that closely simulated those found in silica-depositing hot springs. Virus morphology was maintained, and a clear elemental signature of phosphorus was detected by energy-dispersive X-ray spectrophotometry (EDS).

Genetically designed Peptide-based molecular materials

With recent developments of nanoscale engineering in the physical and chemical sciences and advances in molecular biology, molecular biomimetics is combining genetic tools and evolutionary approaches with synthetic nanoscale constructs to create a new hybrid methodology: genetically designed peptide-based molecular materials. Following the fundamental principles of genome-based design, molecular recognition, and self-assembly in nature, we can now use recombinant DNA technologies to design single or multifunctional peptides and peptide-based molecular constructs that can interact with solids and synthetic systems. These solid-binding peptides have made significant impact as inorganic synthesizers, nanoparticle linkers, and molecular assemblers, or simply as molecular building blocks, in a wide range of fields from chemistry to materials science to medicine. As part of the programmatic theme, "Nanoscience: Challenges for the Future", the current developments, challenges, and future prospects of the field were presented during a symposium at the 237th ACS National Meeting held in March 2009. This Nano Focus article presents a synopsis of the work discussed there.