Octahedral gold nanoparticles (GNP) provide a stable support for hybrid lipid membranes with defined facets and curvatures, which are useful as biosensors. Here, we synthesized octahedral and spherical GNPs and coated them with L-α-phosphatidylcholine (PC) and a hydrophobic anchor, propanethiol, to form a hybrid lipid membrane. An optimized concentration of PC and propanethiol were used to ensure that the GNPs were fully encapsulated within the membrane. Octahedral and spherical GNPs with similar surface areas required different concentrations of PC and propanethiol to achieve an ion-impermeable membrane as determined by a cyanide stability assay. The lipid coating process was monitored by measuring the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the GNPs, which reports on small changes in refractive index near the GNP surface. Octahedral GNPs were found to be more sensitive than spherical GNPs to changes in refractive index. LSPR measurements were also used to obtain binding constants for an α-helical amphipathic peptide to the hybrid lipid membrane coated GNPs.

Lipid coated gold nanoparticles as models of faceted and highly curved membranes

249th National Meeting (2015)

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