Science, Space and Technology News 2024
Researchers have advanced the understanding of membrane protein dynamics by studying bacteriorhodopsin with innovative methods combining atomic force microscopy and light triggers.
“The energetics of membrane proteins has been challenging to study and therefore not well understood,” explained Perkins. “Using AFM and other methods, we can create ways to look into this further.
Because bR’s folding processes are triggered by light, Perkins and Jacobson added a lighting element to the AFM procedure. “We had this clever idea to glue super thin green LEDs—which trigger the bacteriorhodopsin—to a metal puck, which we can attach to the AFM,” Perkins elaborated. “These green LEDs are also cheap, like $1.00 apiece or $1.50 apiece. Compared to our AFM cantilever, which costs about $80 apiece, throwing away a $1.50 LED is hardly something we worry about.
“In biology, you might see something, but you need to ask, am I seeing what I think I’m seeing?” Perkins said. “So, by making a mutation and seeing the effect that we expected, we have increased confidence that we’re really studying the process we think we are studying.”While Perkins and Jacobson observed proper folding 60% of the time, the other 40% of cases surprised them, as the protein misfolded but could still pump a proton through the membrane.
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