Laser deposition of cryoglobulin blood proteins thin films by matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation

We report the first successful deposition of type II cryoglobulin blood protein thin films by matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) using a KrF* excimer laser source (lambda = 248 nm, tau(FWHM) approximate to 20 ns) operated at a repetition rate of 10 Hz. We demonstrate by AFM and FTIR that MAPLE-deposited thin films consist of starting type H cryoglobulin only, maintaining its chemical structure and biological functionality, being properly collected and processed. The dependence on incident laser fluence of the induced surface morphology is presented. The presence of type II cryoglobulin was revealed as aggregates of globular material in the MAPLE-deposited thin films and confirmed by standard cryoglobulin tests. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.