Spidroins under the Influence of Alcohol: Effect of Ethanol on Secondary Structure and Molecular Level Solvation of Silk-Like Proteins.

Future sustainable materials based on designer biomolecules require control of the solution assembly, but also interfacial interactions. Alcohol treatments of protein materials are an accessible means to this, making understanding of the process at the molecular level of seminal importance. We focus here on the influence of ethanol on spidroins, the main proteins of silk.

Mineralization of phosphorylated cellulose: crucial role of surface structure and monovalent ions for optimizing calcium content.

Cellulose can be phosphorylated to produce organic matrices with highly adsorptive properties for, e.g., biocompatible materials for biomedical applications.

Molecular-Level Insight into the Interaction of Phospholipid Bilayers with Cellulose.

Molecular-level insight into the interactions of phospholipid molecules with cellulose is crucial for the development of novel cellulose-based materials for wound dressing. Here we employ the state-of-the-art computer simulations to unlock for the first time the molecular mechanisms behind such interactions. To this end, we performed a series of atomic-scale molecular dynamics simulations of phospholipid bilayers on a crystalline cellulose support at various hydration levels of the bilayer leaflets next to the cellulose surface.

Atmospheric pressure ionization permanent magnet fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry.

A new Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer based on a permanent magnet with an atmospheric pressure ionization source was designed and constructed. A mass resolving power (full-width-at-half-maximum) of up to 80,000 in the electron ionization mode and 25,000 in the electrospray mode was obtained. Also, a mass measurement accuracy at low-ppm level has been demonstrated for peptide mixtures in a mass range of up to 1200 m/z in the isotopically resolved mass spectra.