The authors would like to thank Prof. Lia Addadi, Prof. Jonathan Erez, and Dr. Yael Politi for fruitful discussions. This research has been supported by the Israeli Science Foundation (ISF), grant 1150/14.

1. Calcium carbonate crystallization
<ol>
	<li>Control preparation and optimization
	<ol>
		<li>Prepare clean glass pieces. Use the same cleaning procedure to clean the glassware.
		<ol>
			<li>Use a diamond pen to cut pieces of a glass microscope slide so that they fit in a well of a 96-well plate. 
			NOTE: 5 mm x 5 mm pieces should largely fit.</li>
			<li>Place the glass pieces in a beaker with triple distilled water (TDW) so that water covers the glass slides and sonicate in a bath sonicator for 10 min.</li>
			<li>Decant the water, add ethanol to cover the glass slides, and sonicate in a bath sonicator for 10 min.</li>
			<li>Dry the slides and the glassware with a stream of nitrogen gas and place them in an air plasma cleaner for 10 min at 130 W.</li>
		</ol>
		</li>
		<li>Optimize the concentration of the CaCl2 used in the calcification experiments performed under the desired experimental conditions to achieve a sample rich with smooth-faceted calcite crystals (without or at least with a scarce number of vaterite crystals).
		<ol>
			<li>Fill the wells at the corners of a 96-well plate with ammonium carbonate powder and seal the plate using aluminum foil; cover the foil with paraffin film. Clean any residual ammonium carbonate using nitrogen gas. 
			CAUTION: Ammonium carbonate irritates nose and lungs; use only inside the fume hood.</li>
			<li>Prepare a stock solution of 0.5 M CaCl2. This stock solution will be used to prepare a gradient of concentrations of CaCl2 solutions in the multi-well plate. 
			NOTE: A 10 mL stock solution is sufficient for the whole experiment.</li>
			<li>Place the previously cut and cleaned glass pieces into five different wells. Use the closest wells to the center.</li>
			<li>Fill each well bearing a glass piece with 100 &#181;L of a CaCl2&#160;solution16. Mix TDW and 0.5 M CaCl2 (stock) to achieve an increasing concentration gradient of CaCl2 across the different wells. If a different sized well-plate is used, adjust the concentration of CaCl2 to achieve separate calcite crystals (step 1.1.2.10, and see Discussion section). 
			NOTE: An increasing CaCl2 gradient of 10, 20, 30, 40 ,50 mM concentrations in separate wells is used in this protocol. To increase the concentration range or the number of concentrations tested, use additional wells.</li>
			<li>Puncture the cover of each of the wells containing ammonium carbonate 3x with a needle.</li>
			<li>Put back the lid, seal the borders with paraffin film and keep it at 18 &#176;C in an incubator for 20 h.</li>
			<li>After the incubation, open the lid carefully inside a fume hood and remove the crystals formed at the water/air interface with a loop.</li>
			<li>Use a tweezer to transfer the glass pieces into a beaker containing double distillated water (DDW). Remove the samples from the beaker and use a double-sided tape to fix the glass pieces onto the bottom of the Petri dish.</li>
			<li>Dry excessive water touching the borders of the slide with tissue wipes. Cover the petri dish and place it in a desiccator for 24 h.</li>
			<li>Observe the crystals formed on the glass pieces with a stereoscope (3.5x magnification) and/or an upright optical microscope (10x-40x magnification). If the control solutions are clean, rhombohedral crystals (most likely calcite) will be observed with an optical microscope (Figure 2A).</li>
			<li>If in addition to the rhombohedral crystals, the control contains spherical crystals (most likely vaterite, Figure 2B), or if scanning electron microscope (SEM) images show rhombohedral crystals with rough rather than smooth faces (Figure 3A,B), repeat the crystallization protocol making sure that the cleaning step (1.1.1) is performed correctly. Furthermore, make better care that there is no ammonium carbonate in areas on the plate other than the dedicated wells. Otherwise, continue to the next step.</li>
		</ol>
		</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Crystallization in the presence of the additives
	<ol>
		<li>To study the effect of the additives on the crystallization of CaCO3, set up a multi-well plate that contains (in different wells), a control CaCl2 solution without the additives, and CaCl2 solutions with the additives. Use the optimal concentration of CaCl2 found in section 1.1.2 for the experiment. 
		NOTE: The protocol below uses optimal conditions as those reported in a previous study16.</li>
		<li>Repeat step 1.1.2.2.</li>
		<li>Place ammonium carbonate powder in the corners of the plate as described in step 1.1.2.1.</li>
		<li>In each well where precipitation will occur, place a glass piece that was cut and cleaned as described in section 1.1.1.</li>
		<li>To prepare control wells, pipette 90 &#181;L of TDW into the control wells. Prepare at least one replicate of each well including the control. If the additive used is in a buffer solution, then pipette 90 &#181;L of buffer instead of TDW water.</li>
		<li>Prepare the additive-containing wells. Repeat step 1.2.5 by adding 90 &#181;L of the additive solution in water. If the additive is in buffer (instead of TDW), pre-adjust the concentration of the additive with buffer to meet the desired final concentration. Keep a total volume of 90 &#181;L; pipette first the additive, then the buffer. 
		NOTE: A final concentration of 10 &#181;M of the protein TapA in 100 mM NaCl, 25 mM Tris pH 8.0 buffer16 is used in this protocol.</li>
		<li>Add 10 &#181;L of the 0.5 M CaCl2 stock solution (prepared in step 1.2.2) to both the controls and the additives-containing wells to reach a final concentration of 50 mM CaCl2.</li>
		<li>Repeat steps 1.1.2.5-1.1.2.9.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
</ol>
2. Characterization of calcium carbonate crystals
<ol>
	<li>With a scanning electron microscope, observe the calcium carbonate crystals formed in the presence of the additives at a higher resolution than that obtained by optical microcopy (see step 1.1.2.10).
	<ol>
		<li>Mount the glass pieces containing the crystals on an aluminum stub with double-sided carbon tape.</li>
		<li>Coat with a layer of Au/Pd for 40-50 s.</li>
		<li>Acquire the images at 5 kV acceleration voltage. 
		NOTE: Figure 3A shows a representative SEM image of calcium carbonate crystals formed in a proper control experiment, while Figure 4 shows representative images of calcium carbonate crystals formed in the presence of the protein TapA.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Perform micro Raman spectroscopy to determine the calcium carbonate polymorphs formed. Micro Raman allows the collection of a Raman spectrum from single crystals rather than from a whole powder.
	<ol>
		<li>Use a 20x objective of the microscope to choose the crystal of interest.</li>
		<li>Collect the Raman spectrum in a range of 100&#8722;3200 cm-1 using a 514 nm argon laser. 
		NOTE: Figure 5 shows representative spectra of calcite (A) and vaterite (B). For the spectrum of aragonite, refer to reference18.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Quantification of the mass percentage of the additives in the CaCO3 precipitates
	<ol>
		<li>Verify/measure the extinction coefficient (&#949;) of the additive used. The extinction coefficient of a protein can be given by online servers19. If the extinction coefficient is unknown, measure the absorbance of the additive at different concentrations, plot the absorbance vs. concentration and calculate the extinction coefficient from the slope of the curve.</li>
		<li>Weigh the glass pieces where the crystals formed, preferably use a microbalance.</li>
		<li>Scrap the crystals off the glass into 1.2 mL of 0.1 M acetic acid solution, vortex and sonicate the sample. Store the sample at room temperature for 24 h. 
		CAUTION: Acetic acid is very hazardous in case of skin or eye contact; handle with caution and dispose following the regulations.</li>
		<li>Weigh the glass slide after scraping off the crystals.</li>
		<li>Measure the UV/vis absorbance (A) spectrum of the solution. If the additive is a protein, measure the absorbance at 280 nm and calculate its concentration (C), using the Beer-Lambert equation: 
		<img alt="Equation 1" src="/files/ftp_upload/59638/59638eq1.jpg" /> 
		where l is the optical path inside the cuvette.</li>
		<li>Use the concentration (C) found in 2.3.5 and the volume used (V = 1.2 mL) to calculate the mass (m) of the additives in/on the crystals. If the concentration is in mg/mL, use the equation C &#9679; V = m.
		<ol>
			<li>If the concentration is in mol/L, then calculate the moles (n) applying C &#9679; V = n. Then use the molecular weight (Mw) to calculate the mass (m) of the additives (m = n &#9679; Mw).</li>
		</ol>
		</li>
		<li>Calculate the weight percentage of the additives in/on the crystals using the equation: <img alt="Equation 2" src="/files/ftp_upload/59638/59638eq2.jpg" />, where m is the mass of the additives, and &#916;ms is the mass of the calcium carbonate crystals that were scrapped off the glass piece.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
</ol>

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The authors have nothing to disclose.

The method described here is aimed at forming calcium carbonate crystals in the presence of organic additives and evaluating the effect of organic biopolymers on the morphology and structure of calcium carbonate crystals in vitro. The method is based on the comparison of the crystals formed in the presence of the organic additives to the calcite crystals formed in the control experiment. We have shown how to use the diffusion method to form the calcium carbonate crystals, how to characterize their morphology using optica...

Biomineralization is the formation of minerals in the presence of organic molecules, often related with functional and/or structural roles in living organisms. Biomineralization may be intracellular, as in the formation of magnetite inside magnetotactic bacteria1, or extracellular, as in the formation of calcium carbonate in sea urchin spikes2, of hydroxyapatite that is related with collagen in bones3 and of enamel that is associated with amelogenin in teeth4. Biomineralization is a complex process that depends on many parameters in the living organism. Therefore, in order to simplify the system under study, it is necessary to evaluate the effect of separate components on the process. In many cases, biomineralization is induced by the presence of extracellular biopolymers. The purpose of the method presented here are as follows: (1) To form calcium carbonate crystals in the presence of isolated biopolymers in vitro, using a vapour diffusion method. (2) To study the effect of the biopolymers on the morphology and structure of calcium carbonate.
Three principal methods to precipitate calcium carbonate in vitro in the presence of organic additives are used5,6. The first method, which we will refer to as the solution method, is based on mixing a soluble salt of calcium (e.g., CaCl2) with a soluble salt of carbonate (e.g., sodium carbonate). The mixing process may be performed in several ways: inside a reactor with three cells that are separated by porous membranes7. Here, each of the outer cells contains a soluble salt and the central cell contains a solution with the additive to be tested. Calcium and carbonate diffuse from the outer to the middle cell, resulting in the precipitation of the less soluble calcium carbonate when the concentrations of calcium and carbonate exceed their solubility product, Ksp = [Ca2+][CO32-]. An additional mixing method is the double-jet procedure8. In this method, each soluble salt is injected from a separate syringe to a stirred solution containing the additive, where calcium carbonate precipitates. Here, the injection and therefore the mixing rate is well controlled, in contrast with the previous method where mixing is controlled by diffusion.
The second method used to crystallize CaCO3 is the Kitano method9. This method is based on the carbonate/hydrogen carbonate equilibrium (2HCO3- (aq) + Ca2+(aq) <img alt="Image 1" src="/files/ftp_upload/59638/59638img01.jpg" /> CaCO3 (s) + CO2 (g) + H2O (l)). Here, CO2 is bubbled into a solution containing CaCO3 in a solid form, shifting the equilibrium to the left and therefore dissolving the calcium carbonate. The undissolved calcium carbonate is filtered and the desired additives are added to the bicarbonate-rich solution. CO2 is then allowed to evaporate, thereby shifting the reaction to the right, forming calcium carbonate in the presence of the additives.
The third method of calcium carbonate crystallization, which we will describe here, is the vapor diffusion method10. In this set-up, the organic additive, dissolved in a solution of calcium chloride, is placed in a closed chamber near ammonium carbonate in a powder form. When ammonium carbonate powder decomposes into carbon dioxide and ammonia, they diffuse into the solution containing calcium ions (e.g., CaCl2), and calcium carbonate is precipitated (see Figure 1 for illustration). The calcium carbonate crystals can grow by slow precipitation or by fast precipitation. For the slow precipitation, a solution containing the additive in CaCl2 solution is placed in a desiccator next to the ammonium carbonate powder. In the fast precipitation, described in length in the protocol, both the additive solution and the ammonium carbonate are placed closer together in a multi-well plate. The slow precipitation method will produce fewer nucleation centers and larger crystals, and the fast precipitation will result in more nucleation centers and smaller crystals.
The methods described above differ in their technical complexity, in the level of control and in the rate of the precipitation process. The mixing method requires a special set-up6 for both the double jet and the three-cell system. In the mixing method, the presence of other soluble counter ions (e.g., Na+, Cl-)6 is inevitable, whereas in the Kitano method, calcium and (bi) carbonate are the only ions in solution and it does not involve the presence of additional counter ions (e.g., Na+, Cl-). Furthermore, the mixing method requires relatively large volumes and therefore it is not suitable for working with expensive biopolymers. The advantage of the double jet is that it is possible to control the rate of solution injection and that it is a rapid process in comparison to other methods.
The advantage of the Kitano method and the vapor diffusion method is that the formation of calcium carbonate is controlled by diffusion of CO2 into/out of a CaCl2 solution, thus allowing to probe slower nucleation and precipitation processes11,12. Furthermore, calcium carbonate formation by diffusion of CO2 may resemble calcification processes in vivo13,14,15. In this method, well-defined and separated crystals are formed16. Last, the effect of single or multiple biopolymers on calcium carbonate formation can be tested. This enables a systematic study of the effect of a series of additive concentrations on calcium carbonate formation as well as a study of mixtures of biopolymers -&#160;all performed in a controlled manner. This method is suitable for use with a large range of concentrations and volumes of additives. The minimal volume used is approximately 50 &#181;L and therefore this method is advantageous when there is a limited amount of the available biopolymers. The maximal volume depends on the accessibility of a larger well-plate, or the desiccator into which the plate or beaker containing CaCl2 are to be inserted. The method described below has been optimized for working in a 96-well plate with a biopolymer chosen to be the protein TapA17.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width:659px;" width="659">
	<colgroup>
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
		<col />
	</colgroup>
	<tbody>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Acetic acid</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Gadot</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">64-19-7</td>
			<td style="width:167px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Ammonium carbonate</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Sigma-Aldrich</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">506-87-6</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Calcium chloride dihydrate</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Merck KGaA</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">10035-04-8</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Ethanol Absolute</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Gadot</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">64-17-5</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Micro-Raman</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Renishaw</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>inVia Reflex spectrometer coupled with an upright Leica optical microscope</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Microscope</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Nikon</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>Eclipse 90i model</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Nis elements Br software</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Nikon</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>For microscope imaging</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:247px;">Scanning Electron Microscope</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">ThermoFisher Scientific</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>FEI Sirion microscope</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Spectrophotometer</td>
			<td>JASCO</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>V-670 model</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:247px;">Sputter coater</td>
			<td style="width:127px;">Polaron</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>SC7640 model</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

calcium carbonate formation in the presence of biopolymeric additives

Biomineralization is the formation of minerals in the presence of organic molecules, often related with functional and/or structural roles in living organisms. It is a complex process and therefore a simple, in vitro, system is required to understand the effect of isolated molecules on the biomineralization process. In many cases, biomineralization is directed by biopolymers in the extracellular matrix. In order to evaluate the effect of isolated biopolymers on the morphology and structure of calcite in vitro, we have used the vapor diffusion method for the precipitation of calcium carbonate, scanning electron microscopy and micro Raman for the characterization, and ultraviolet-visible (UV/Vis) absorbance for measuring the quantity of a biopolymer in the crystals. In this method, we expose the isolated biopolymers, dissolved in a calcium chloride solution, to gaseous ammonia and carbon dioxide that originate from the decomposition of solid ammonium carbonate. Under the conditions where the solubility product of calcium carbonate is reached, calcium carbonate precipitates and crystals are formed. Calcium carbonate has different polymorphs that differ in their thermodynamic stability: amorphous calcium carbonate, vaterite, aragonite, and calcite. In the absence of biopolymers, under clean conditions, calcium carbonate is mostly present in the calcite form, which is the most thermodynamically stable polymorph of calcium carbonate. This method examines the effect of the biopolymeric additives on the morphology and structure of calcium carbonate crystals. Here, we demonstrate the protocol through the study of an extracellular bacterial protein, TapA, on the formation of calcium carbonate crystals. Specifically, we focus on the experimental set up, and characterization methods, such as optical and electron microscopy as well as Raman spectroscopy.

A schematic of the experimental set up is shown in Figure 1. Briefly, the diffusion method is used in order to form calcium carbonate crystals in 96-well plates and test the effect of biopolymers on the morphology and structure of the calcium carbonate crystals. In these experiments, ammonium carbonate is decomposed into ammonia and CO2, which diffuse into calcium carbonate solutions, resulting in the formation of calcium carbonate crystals (Figure 1 ...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Calcium Carbonate Formation in the Presence of Biopolymeric Additives at JoVE.com

Calcium Carbonate Formation in the Presence of Biopolymeric Additives

We describe a protocol for the precipitation and characterization of calcium carbonate crystals that form in the presence of biopolymers.

Biomineralization is the formation of minerals in the presence of organic molecules, often related with functional and/or structural roles in living ...

calcium-carbonate-formation-in-the-presence-of-biopolymeric-additives

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JoVE Journal

Chemistry

16.6K Views.  The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. We describe a protocol for the precipitation and characterization of calcium carbonate crystals that form in the presence of biopolymers.

Video: Calcium Carbonate Formation in the Presence of Biopolymeric Additives

Microwave-assisted Functionalization of Poly(ethylene glycol) and On-resin Peptides for Use in Chain Polymerizations and Hydrogel Formation

One of the main benefits to using poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) macromers in hydrogel formation is synthetic versatility. The ability to draw from a large variety of PEG molecular weights and configurations (arm number, arm length, and branching pattern) affords researchers tight control over resulting hydrogel structures and properties, including Young&#8217;s modulus and mesh size. This video will illustrate a rapid, efficient, solvent-free, microwave-assisted method to methacrylate PEG precursors into poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (PEGDM). This synthetic method provides much-needed starting materials for applications in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. The demonstrated method is superior to traditional methacrylation methods as it is significantly faster and simpler, as well as more economical and environmentally friendly, using smaller amounts of reagents and solvents. We will also demonstrate an adaptation of this technique for on-resin methacrylamide functionalization of peptides. This on-resin method allows the N-terminus of peptides to be functionalized with methacrylamide groups prior to deprotection and cleavage from resin. This allows for selective addition of methacrylamide groups to the N-termini of the peptides while amino acids with reactive side groups (e.g.&#160;primary amine of lysine, primary alcohol of serine, secondary alcohols of threonine, and phenol of tyrosine) remain protected, preventing functionalization at multiple sites. This article will detail common analytical methods (proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy (;H-NMR) and Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time of Flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-ToF)) to assess the efficiency of the functionalizations. Common pitfalls and suggested troubleshooting methods will be addressed, as will modifications of the technique which can be used to further tune macromer functionality and resulting hydrogel physical and chemical properties. Use of synthesized products for the formation of hydrogels for drug delivery and cell-material interaction studies will be demonstrated, with particular attention paid to modifying hydrogel composition to affect mesh size, controlling hydrogel stiffness and drug release.

Microwave-assisted Functionalization of Polyethylene glycol and On-resin Peptides for Use in Chain Polymerizations and Hydrogel Formation

This video will illustrate a rapid, efficient method to methacrylate poly(ethylene glycol), enabling chain polymerizations and hydrogel synthesis. It will demonstrate how to similarly introduce methacrylamide functionalities into peptides, detail common analytical methods to assess functionalization efficiency, provide suggestions for troubleshooting and advanced modifications, and demonstrate typical hydrogel characterization techniques.

One of the main benefits to using poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) macromers in hydrogel formation is synthetic versatility. The ability to draw from a large ...

Formation of Ordered Biomolecular Structures by the Self-assembly of Short Peptides

In nature, complex functional structures are formed by the self-assembly of biomolecules under mild conditions. Understanding the forces that control self-assembly and mimicking this process in vitro will bring about major advances in the areas of materials science and nanotechnology. Among the available biological building blocks, peptides have several advantages as they present substantial diversity, their synthesis in large scale is straightforward, and they can easily be modified with biological and chemical entities1,2. Several classes of designed peptides such as cyclic peptides, amphiphile peptides and peptide-conjugates self-assemble into ordered structures in solution. Homoaromatic dipeptides, are a class of short self-assembled peptides that contain all the molecular information needed to form ordered structures such as nanotubes, spheres and fibrils3-8. A large variety of these peptides is commercially available.
This paper presents a procedure that leads to the formation of ordered structures by the self-assembly of homoaromatic peptides. The protocol requires only commercial reagents and basic laboratory equipment. In addition, the paper describes some of the methods available for the characterization of peptide-based assemblies. These methods include electron and atomic force microscopy and Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). Moreover, the manuscript demonstrates the blending of peptides (coassembly) and the formation of a &#34;beads on a string&#34;-like structure by this process.9 The protocols presented here can be adapted to other classes of peptides or biological building blocks and can potentially lead to the discovery of new peptide-based structures and to better control of their assembly.

This paper describes the formation of highly ordered peptide-based structures by the spontaneous process of self-assembly. The method utilizes commercially available peptides and common lab equipment. This technique can be applied to a large variety of peptides and may lead to the discovery of new peptide-based assemblies.

In nature, complex functional structures are formed by the self-assembly of biomolecules under mild conditions. Understanding the forces that control ...

Radiolabeling and Quantification of Cellular Levels of Phosphoinositides by High Performance Liquid Chromatography-coupled Flow Scintillation

Phosphoinositides (PtdInsPs) are essential signaling lipids responsible for recruiting specific effectors and conferring organelles with molecular identity and function. Each of the seven PtdInsPs varies in their distribution and abundance, which are tightly regulated by specific kinases and phosphatases. The abundance of PtdInsPs can change abruptly in response to various signaling events or disturbance of the regulatory machinery. To understand how these events lead to changes in the amount of PtdInsPs and their resulting impact, it is important to quantify PtdInsP levels before and after a signaling event or between control and abnormal conditions. However, due to their low abundance and similarity, quantifying the relative amounts of each PtdInsP can be challenging. This article describes a method for quantifying PtdInsP levels by metabolically labeling cells with 3H-myo-inositol, which is incorporated into PtdInsPs. Phospholipids are then precipitated and deacylated. The resulting soluble 3H-glycero-inositides are further extracted, separated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and detected by flow scintillation. The labeling and processing of yeast samples is described in detail, as well as the instrumental setup for the HPLC and flow scintillator. Despite losing structural information regarding acyl chain content, this method is sensitive and can be optimized to concurrently quantify all seven PtdInsPs in cells.

Phosphoinositides are signaling lipids whose relative abundance rapidly changes in response to various stimuli. This article describes a method to measure the abundance of phosphoinositides by metabolically labeling cells with 3H-myo-inositol, followed by extraction and deacylation. Extracted glycero-inositides are then separated by high-performance liquid chromatography and quantified by flow scintillation.

Phosphoinositides (PtdInsPs) are essential signaling lipids responsible for recruiting specific effectors and conferring organelles with molecular ...

Synthesis of Protein Bioconjugates via Cysteine-maleimide Chemistry

The chemical linking or bioconjugation of proteins to fluorescent dyes, drugs, polymers and other proteins has a broad range of applications, such as the development of antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) and nanomedicine, fluorescent microscopy and systems chemistry. For many of these applications, specificity of the bioconjugation method used is of prime concern. The Michael addition of maleimides with cysteine(s) on the target proteins is highly selective and proceeds rapidly under mild conditions, making it one of the most popular methods for protein bioconjugation.
We demonstrate here the modification of the only surface-accessible cysteine residue on yeast cytochrome c with a ruthenium(II) bisterpyridine maleimide. The protein bioconjugation is verified by gel electrophoresis and purified by aqueous-based fast protein liquid chromatography in 27% yield of isolated protein material. Structural characterization with MALDI-TOF MS and UV-Vis is then used to verify that the bioconjugation is successful. The protocol shown here is easily applicable to other cysteine - maleimide coupling of proteins to other proteins, dyes, drugs or polymers.

Synthesis of Protein Bioconjugates via Cysteine-maleimide Chemistry

This protocol details the important steps required for the bioconjugation of a cysteine containing protein to a maleimide, including reagent purification, reaction conditions, bioconjugate purification and bioconjugate characterization.

The chemical linking or bioconjugation of proteins to fluorescent dyes, drugs, polymers and other proteins has a broad range of applications, such as the ...

Influence of Hybrid Perovskite Fabrication Methods on Film Formation, Electronic Structure, and Solar Cell Performance

Hybrid organic/inorganic halide perovskites have lately been a topic of great interest in the field of solar cell applications, with the potential to achieve device efficiencies exceeding other thin film device technologies. Yet, large variations in device efficiency and basic physical properties are reported. This is due to unintentional variations during film processing, which have not been sufficiently investigated so far. We therefore conducted an extensive study of the morphology and electronic structure of a large number of CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite where we show how the preparation method as well as the mixing ratio of educts methylammonium iodide and lead(II) iodide impact properties like film formation, crystal structure, density of states, energy levels, and ultimately the solar cell performance.

We present an extensive study on the effects of different fabrication methods for organic/inorganic perovskite thin films by comparing crystal structures, density of states, energy levels, and ultimately the solar cell performance.

Hybrid organic/inorganic halide perovskites have lately been a topic of great interest in the field of solar cell applications, with the potential to ...

Synthesis and Evaluation of a Ruthenium-based Mitochondrial Calcium Uptake Inhibitor

We detail the synthesis and purification of a mitochondrial calcium uptake inhibitor, [(OH2)(NH3)4Ru(&#181;-O)Ru(NH3)4(OH2)]5+. The optimized synthesis of this compound commences from [Ru(NH3)5Cl]Cl2 in 1 M NH4OH in a closed container, yielding a green solution. Purification is accomplished with cation-exchange chromatography. This compound is characterized and verified to be pure by UV-vis and IR spectroscopy. The mitochondrial calcium uptake inhibitory properties are assessed in permeabilized HeLa cells by fluorescence spectroscopy.

A protocol for the synthesis, purification, and characterization of a ruthenium-based inhibitor of mitochondrial calcium uptake is presented. A procedure to evaluate its efficacy in permeabilized mammalian cells is demonstrated.

We detail the synthesis and purification of a mitochondrial calcium uptake inhibitor, [(OH2)(NH3)4Ru(&#181;-O)Ru(NH3)4(OH2)]5+. The optimized synthesis of ...

Membrane Remodeling of Giant Vesicles in Response to Localized Calcium Ion Gradients

In a wide variety of fundamental cell processes, such as membrane trafficking and apoptosis, cell membrane shape transitions occur concurrently with local variations in calcium ion concentration. The main molecular components involved in these processes have been identified; however, the specific interplay between calcium ion gradients and the lipids within the cell membrane is far less known, mainly due to the complex nature of biological cells and the difficultly of observation schemes. To bridge this gap, a synthetic approach is successfully implemented to reveal the localized effect of calcium ions on cell membrane mimics. Establishing a mimic to resemble the conditions within a cell is a severalfold problem. First, an adequate biomimetic model with appropriate dimensions and membrane composition is required to capture the physical properties of cells. Second, a micromanipulation setup is needed to deliver a small amount of calcium ions to a particular membrane location. Finally, an observation scheme is required to detect and record the response of the lipid membrane to the external stimulation. This article offers a detailed biomimetic approach for studying the calcium ion-membrane interaction, where a lipid vesicle system, consisting of a giant unilamellar vesicle (GUV) connected to a multilamellar vesicle (MLV), is exposed to a localized calcium gradient formed using a microinjection system. The dynamics of the ionic influence on the membrane were observed using fluorescence microscopy and recorded at video frame rates. As a result of the membrane stimulation, highly curved membrane tubular protrusions (MTPs) formed inside the GUV, oriented away from the membrane. The described approach induces the remodeling of the lipid membrane and MTP production in an entirely contactless and controlled manner. This approach introduces a means to address the details of calcium ion-membrane interactions, providing new avenues to study the mechanisms of cell membrane reshaping.

We present a technique for contactless micromanipulation of vesicles, using localized calcium ion gradients. Microinjection of a calcium ion solution, in the vicinity of a giant lipid vesicle, is utilized to remodel the lipid membrane, resulting in the production of membrane tubular protrusions.

In a wide variety of fundamental cell processes, such as membrane trafficking and apoptosis, cell membrane shape transitions occur concurrently with local ...

Photoelectron Imaging of Anions Illustrated by 310 Nm Detachment of F&#8722;

Anion photoelectron imaging is a very efficient method for the study of energy states of bound negative ions, neutral species and interactions of unbound electrons with neutral molecules/atoms. State-of-the-art in vacuo anion generation techniques allow application to a broad range of atomic, molecular, and cluster anion systems. These are separated and selected using time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Electrons are removed by linearly polarized photons (photo detachment) using table-top laser sources which provide ready access to excitation energies from the infra-red to the near ultraviolet. Detecting the photoelectrons with a velocity mapped imaging lens and position sensitive detector means that, in principle, every photoelectron reaches the detector and the detection efficiency is uniform for all kinetic energies. Photoelectron spectra extracted from the images via mathematical reconstruction using an inverse Abel transformation reveal details of the anion internal energy state distribution and the resultant neutral energy states. At low electron kinetic energy, typical resolution is sufficient to reveal energy level differences on the order of a few millielectron-volts, i.e., different vibrational levels for molecular species or spin-orbit splitting in atoms. Photoelectron angular distributions extracted from the inverse Abel transformation represent the signatures of the bound electron orbital, allowing more detailed probing of electronic structure. The spectra and angular distributions also encode details of the interactions between the outgoing electron and the residual neutral species subsequent to excitation. The technique is illustrated by the application to an atomic anion (F&#8722;), but it can also be applied to the measurement of molecular anion spectroscopy, the study of low lying anion resonances (as an alternative to scattering experiments) and femtosecond (fs) time resolved studies of the dynamic evolution of anions.

Here, we present a protocol for photoelectron imaging of anionic species. Anions generated in vacuo and separated by mass spectrometry are probed using velocity mapped photoelectron imaging, providing details of anion and neutral energy levels, anion and neutral structure and the nature of the anion electronic state.

Anion photoelectron imaging is a very efficient method for the study of energy states of bound negative ions, neutral species and interactions of unbound ...

Luminophore Formation in Various Conformations of Bovine Serum Albumin by Binding of Gold(III)

The purpose of the presented protocols is to study the process of Au(III) binding to BSA, yielding conformation change-induced red fluorescence (&#955;em = 640 nm) of BSA-Au(III) complexes. The method adjusts the pH to show that the emergence of the red fluorescence is correlated with the pH-induced equilibrium transitions of the BSA conformations. Red fluorescent BSA-Au(III) complexes can only be formed with an adjustment of pH at or above 9.7, which corresponds to the &#34;A-form&#34; conformation of BSA. The protocol to adjust the BSA to Au molar ratio and to monitor the time-course of the process of Au(III) binding is described. The minimum number of Au(III) per BSA, to produce the red fluorescence, is less than seven. We describe the protocol in steps to illustrate the presence of multiple Au(III) binding sites in BSA. First, by adding copper (Cu(II)) or nickel (Ni(II)) cations followed by Au(III), this method reveals a binding site for Au(III) that is not the red fluorophore. Second, by modifying BSA by thiol capping agents, another nonfluorophore-forming Au(III) binding site is revealed. Third, changing the BSA conformation by cleaving and capping of the disulfide bonds, the possible Au(III) binding site(s) are illustrated. The protocol described, to control the BSA conformations and Au(III) binding, can be generally applied to study the interactions of other proteins and metal cations.

Luminophore Formation in Various Conformations of Bovine Serum Albumin by Binding of GoldIII

The protocols for studying the binding of gold cations (Au(III)) to various conformations of bovine serum albumin (BSA) as well as for characterizing the conformational dependent unique BSA-Au fluorescence are presented.

The purpose of the presented protocols is to study the process of Au(III) binding to BSA, yielding conformation change-induced red fluorescence (&#955;em ...

Bio-inspired Polydopamine Surface Modification of Nanodiamonds and Its Reduction of Silver Nanoparticles

Surface functionalization of nanodiamonds (NDs) is still challenging due to the diversity of functional groups on the ND surfaces. Here, we demonstrate a simple protocol for the multifunctional surface modification of NDs by using mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA) coating. In addition, the functional layer of PDA on NDs could serve as a reducing agent to synthesize and stabilize metal nanoparticles. Dopamine (DA) can self-polymerize and spontaneously form PDA layers on ND surfaces if the NDs and dopamine are simply mixed together. The thickness of a PDA layer is controlled by varying the concentration of DA. A typical result shows that a thickness of ~5 to ~15 nm of the PDA layer can be reached by adding 50 to 100 &#181;g/mL of DA to 100 nm ND suspensions. Furthermore, the PDA-NDs are used as a substrate to reduce metal ions, such as Ag[(NH3)2]+, to silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The sizes of the AgNPs rely on the initial concentrations of Ag[(NH3)2]+. Along with an increase in the concentration of Ag[(NH3)2]+, the number of NPs increases, as well as the diameters of the NPs. In summary, this study not only presents a facile method for modifying the surfaces of NDs with PDA, but also demonstrates the enhanced functionality of NDs by anchoring various species of interest (such as AgNPs) for advanced applications.

A facile protocol is presented to functionalize the surfaces of nanodiamonds with polydopamine.

Surface functionalization of nanodiamonds (NDs) is still challenging due to the diversity of functional groups on the ND surfaces. Here, we demonstrate a ...

Calcium Carbonate Formation in the Presence of Biopolymeric Additives

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Microwave-assisted Functionalization of Poly(ethylene glycol) and On-resin Peptides for Use in Chain Polymerizations and Hydrogel Formation

Formation of Ordered Biomolecular Structures by the Self-assembly of Short Peptides

Radiolabeling and Quantification of Cellular Levels of Phosphoinositides by High Performance Liquid Chromatography-coupled Flow Scintillation

Synthesis of Protein Bioconjugates via Cysteine-maleimide Chemistry

Influence of Hybrid Perovskite Fabrication Methods on Film Formation, Electronic Structure, and Solar Cell Performance

Synthesis and Evaluation of a Ruthenium-based Mitochondrial Calcium Uptake Inhibitor

Membrane Remodeling of Giant Vesicles in Response to Localized Calcium Ion Gradients

Photoelectron Imaging of Anions Illustrated by 310 Nm Detachment of F⁻

Luminophore Formation in Various Conformations of Bovine Serum Albumin by Binding of Gold(III)

Bio-inspired Polydopamine Surface Modification of Nanodiamonds and Its Reduction of Silver Nanoparticles