Folding analytical devices for electrochemical ELISA in hydrophobic R(H) paper.

This work describes a device for electrochemical enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) designed for low-resource settings and diagnostics at the point of care. The device is fabricated entirely in hydrophobic paper, produced by silanization of paper with decyl trichlorosilane, and comprises two zones separated by a central crease: an embossed microwell, on the surface of which the antigen or antibody immobilization and recognition events occur, and a detection zone where the electrodes are printed. The two zones are brought in contact by folding the device along this central crease; the analytical signal is recorded from the folded configuration. Two proof-of-concept applications, an electrochemical direct ELISA for the detection of rabbit IgG as a model antigen in buffer and an electrochemical sandwich ELISA for the detection of malarial histidine-rich protein from Plasmodium falciparum (Pf HRP2) in spiked human serum, show the versatility of this device. The limit of detection of the electrochemical sandwich ELISA for the quantification of Pf HRP2 in spiked human serum was 4 ng mL(-1) (10(2) pmol L(-1)), a value within the range of clinically relevant concentrations.

Using "click-e-bricks" to make 3D elastomeric structures.

Soft, 3D elastomeric structures and composite structures are easy to fabricate using click-e-bricks, and the internal architecture of these structures together with the capabilities built into the bricks themselves provide mechanical, optical, electrical, and fluidic functions.

Inkjet printing of conductive inks with high lateral resolution on omniphobic "R(F) paper" for paper-based electronics and MEMS.

The use of omniphobic "fluoroalkylated paper" as a substrate for inkjet printing of aqueous inks that are the precursors of electrically conductive patterns is described. By controlling the surface chemistry of the paper, it is possible to print high resolution, conductive patterns that remain conductive after folding and exposure to common solvents.

Identifying residual structure in intrinsically disordered systems: a 2D IR spectroscopic study of the GVGXPGVG peptide.

The peptide amide-I vibration of a proline turn encodes information on the turn structure. In this study, FTIR, two-dimensional IR spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations were employed to characterize the varying turn conformations that exist in the GVGX(L)PGVG family of disordered peptides. This analysis revealed that changing the size of the side chain at the X amino acid site from Gly to Ala to Val substantially alters the conformation of the peptide. To quantify this effect, proline peak shifts and intensity changes were compared to a structure-based spectroscopic model. These simulated spectra were used to assign the population of type-II ß turns, bulged turns, and irregular ß turns for each peptide. Of particular interest was the Val variant commonly found in the protein elastin, which contained a 25% population of irregular ß turns containing two peptide hydrogen bonds to the proline C═O.

Solvent and conformation dependence of amide I vibrations in peptides and proteins containing proline.

We present a mixed quantum-classical model for studying the amide I vibrational dynamics (predominantly CO stretching) in peptides and proteins containing proline. There are existing models developed for determining frequencies of and couplings between the secondary amide units. However, these are not applicable to proline because this amino acid has a tertiary amide unit. Therefore, a new parametrization is required for infrared-spectroscopic studies of proteins that contain proline, such as collagen, the most abundant protein in humans and animals. Here, we construct the electrostatic and dihedral maps accounting for solvent and conformation effects on frequency and coupling for the proline unit. We examine the quality and the applicability of these maps by carrying out spectral simulations of a number of peptides with proline in D(2)O and compare with experimental observations.

Melting of a beta-hairpin peptide using isotope-edited 2D IR spectroscopy and simulations.

Isotope-edited two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy has been used to characterize the conformational heterogeneity of the beta-hairpin peptide TrpZip2 (TZ2) across its thermal unfolding transition. Four isotopologues were synthesized to probe hydrogen bonding and solvent exposure of the beta-turn (K8), the N-terminus (S1), and the midstrand region (T10 and T3T10). Isotope-shifts, 2D lineshapes, and other spectral changes to the amide I 2D IR spectra of labeled TZ2 isotopologues were observed as a function of temperature. Data were interpreted on the basis of structure-based spectroscopic modeling of conformers obtained from extensive molecular dynamics simulations. The K8 spectra reveal two unique turn geometries, the type I' beta-turn observed in the NMR structure, and a less populated disordered or bulged loop. The data indicate that structures at low temperature resemble the folded NMR structure with typical cross-strand hydrogen bonds, although with a subpopulation of misformed turns. As the temperature is raised from 25 to 85 degrees C, the fraction of population with a type I' turn increases, but the termini also fray. Hydrogen bonding contacts in the midstrand region remain at all temperatures although with increasing thermal disorder. Our data show no evidence of an extended chain or random coil state for the TZ2 peptide at any temperature. The methods demonstrated here offer an approach to characterizing conformational variation within the folded or unfolded states of proteins and peptides.

Structure of solvated Fe(CO)5: complex formation during solvation in alcohols.

The equilibrium structure of iron pentacarbonyl, Fe(CO)5, solvated in various alcohols has been investigated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) measurements and density functional theory calculations. This system was studied because it is prototypical of a larger class of monometallic systems, which are electronically saturated but not sterically crowded. Upon solvation, the Fe(CO)5 is not just surrounded by a solvation shell. Instead, solute-solvent complexes are formed with the oxygen of the alcohol oriented toward an axial ligand of the Fe(CO)5 giving a formation energy on the order of -5 kJ/mol. This complexation is not a chemical reaction but rather a "preassembly" of the solute molecules with a single solvent molecule. For instance, at room temperature the interaction between Fe(CO)5 and ethanol results in 87% of all Fe(CO)5 molecules being complexated with a single ethanol molecule. This complexation was found in all the alcohol systems studied in this paper. The stability of these complexes was found to depend on the alcohol chain length and branching. The observed complexation mechanism is accompanied by an electron density shift from the complexed alcohol molecule toward Fe(CO)5 where it induces a dipole moment. The finding that Fe(CO)5 forms a complex with the hydroxyl group of a single solvent molecule might have significant implications for ligand substitution reactions. This implies that ligand substitution reactions do not have to proceed via a dissociative mechanism. Instead, the reaction might proceed through a concerted mechanism with the leaving CO simultaneously being replaced by the incoming alcohol that was complexed to Fe(CO)5 prior to the photoexcitation.