Three-dimensional fabrication (also known as cross-linking or photo-polymerization) of proteins on the sub-micron scale has been carried out using a low-cost, home-built setup with an Nd3+-YAG laser as the excitation source.  Cross-linking has been carried out by the multiphoton excitation of the photoactivators Rose Bengal, methylene blue, and 9-fluorenone-2-carboxylic acid, and other candidates such as metal complexes are currently being investigated. The goal of this research is to create structures that will serve as models for various applications (drug delivery and tissue engineering). The cross-linking efficiency as a function of a variety of parameters including the number of tryptophans in the protein has been compared.  Experimental parameters have been adjusted to minimize photodamage. The relationship between tryptophan accessibility and minimum photon flux for cross-linking has been investigated, and both experimental and computational methods (molecular docking) have been used to study the interaction (long-range versus binding) between proteins and the photoactivators.

Multiphoton cross-linking and the monomer-photoactivator relationship: An ongoing study using microscopy, fluorescence quenching, and molecular docking

245th National Meeting (2013)

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