2015 - Automated Formation of Lipid Membrane Microarrays for Ionic Single-Molecule Sensing with Protein Nanopores
Orbit 16 publication in Small (2015)
Authors:
Del Rio Martinez J.M., Zaitseva E., Petersen S., Baaken G., Behrends J.C.
Journal:
Small (2015) 11(1):119-125
Abstract:
Efficient use of membrane protein nanopores in ionic single-molecule sensing requires technology for the reliable formation of suspended molecular membranes densely arrayed in formats that allow high-resolution electrical recording. Here, automated formation of bimolecular lipid layers is shown using a simple process where a poly(tetrafluoroethylene)-coated magnetic bar is remotely actuated to perform a turning motion, thereby spreading phospholipid in organic solvent on a nonpolar surface containing a <1 mm2 4 × 4 array of apertures with embedded microelectrodes (microelectrode cavity array). Parallel and high-resolution single-molecule detection by single nanopores is demonstrated on the resulting bilayer arrays, which are shown to form by a classical but very rapid self-assembly process. The technique provides a robust and scalable solution for the problem of reliable, automated formation of multiple independent lipid bilayers in a dense microarray format, while preserving the favorable electrical properties of the microelectrode cavity array.