Valle F, DeRose J A, Dietler G, Kawe M, Plückthun A, Semenza G
Institut de Physique de la Matière Condensèe, BSP, Université de Lausanne, Dorigny, Switzerland.
Ultramicroscopy. 2002 Oct;93(1):83-9. doi: 10.1016/s0304-3991(02)00149-3.
Supramolecular complexes, such as chaperonins, are suitable samples for atomic force microscope structural studies because they have a very well defined shape. High-resolution images can be made using tapping mode in liquid under native conditions. Details about the two-dimensional structures formed onto the surface upon adsorption and of the single protein can be observed. Dissection of the upper ring of the supramolecular complex as a result of the applied lateral force through scanning tip is observed. Finally, the combination of lateral convolution and tip penetration into the cavity of chaperonins offers a direct evaluation of the tip convolution effect on images of macromolecular samples.
