Brushes of Peptide Coiled Coil Bundle Chains

Through solution self-assembly, computationally designed peptide coiled coil bundles (CCBs) have shown the ability to produce 2-D lattices, nanocages, nanotubes, and 1-D supramolecular polymers. However, to date no studies have been performed on the impact of substrate interactions on the structure of CCBs. Successful preservation of the coiled coil motif during surface conjugation could provide a robust pathway towards the computational design of stimuli-responsive latticed self-assembled monolayers and serve as a template for layer by layer growth of complex brushes with exact sequence control. In this poster the use of atomic force microscopy (AFM), angle resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (ARXPS), and quartz crystal microgravimetry (QCM) to characterize peptide layer thickness, surface topography, orientation, and deposition rate will be discussed. Additionally, the impact of temperature, solvent, and pH on the structure of cysteine terminated CCBs on planar gold substrates will be examined.