Nano-patterning of a-C:H surfaces for control of protein adsorption

ISBN-13: 9783659754203 / Angielski / Miękka / 2016 / 168 str.

Muhammad Zeeshan Mughal

Opis

Predicting how proteins fold and adsorb onto surfaces is a complex problem of strong relevance to the health and environmental sectors. It is often examined within the larger context of cellular adhesion, however, understanding adsorption of proteins is complicated because of many factors: cell sensing and intercellular signaling, surface topography and cytoskeleton. Hence, proteins-only studies are valuable to investigate bio-film formation, protein condensation diseases and the toxicity of nano-materials. This book presents a systematic investigation of protein adsorption on nano-patterned hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) thin films. The first half deals with the preparation and analysis of a-C:H patterns by focused ion beam (FIB) milling and atomic force microscopy (AFM) nanoindentation. The second half investigates protein adsorption for four different protein/solvent systems. The results showed that nano-patterned model surfaces are useful to study and control protein adsorption, while the methods developed can be extended to other patterning techniques and protein systems to study independently the influence of topography and composition on protein adsorption.

O autorze

Dr. Mughal obtained his Ph.D degree in Nanotechnology from University of Ulster (Northern Ireland, 2013). He is currently working as a research fellow at University of RomaTre. His research is focused on surface engineering, nano patterning, amorphous carbon, micro-scale residual stress analysis, fracture toughness and nano-mechanical testing.