Molecular interactions between cell membranes and biological molecules such as peptides and proteins play important roles in determining antimicrobial peptide activity and selectivity, and membrane protein orientation and function, etc. It is difficult to probe such interactions in situ in real time at the molecular level. In this study, we applied sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy to examine interactions between model cell membranes and a variety of antimicrobial peptides with different secondary structures. Solid substrate supported lipid bilayer was used as a model for cell membrane. The effects of lipid composition, peptide secondary structure, and peptide solution concentration on the peptide-cell membrane interactions were elucidated by SFG. The structural changes of the lipid bilayer and peptide were both characterized upon interacting. Hamiltonian approach for SFG data analysis and peptide isotope labeling were used in studying the detailed local and global peptide structures. This research demonstrated that SFG is a powerful tool to probe peptide – cell membrane interactions at the molecular level in situ.

Molecular interactions between model cell membranes and biological molecules

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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