Bio-nano interaction of proteins adsorbed on single-walled carbon nanotubes

We applied X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy to investigate the adsorption of proteins onto single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). Specific XANES spectral features such as peptide C=O bonds in proteins were recognized and found to be affected by the corresponding aromatic structure of SWCNTs. Experimental data combined with first-principle calculation of the investigated nano-complex allow the understanding of adsorption mechanism and reveal that an interface interaction occurs leading to precise structural distortions of proteins. The study also demonstrates that XANES is a powerful tool to characterize structural details of proteins at the interface of complex systems. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.