| EPSRC Reference: |
GR/S60464/01 |
| Title: |
Protein & enzyme interactions at surfaces studied under physiological conditions |
| Principal Investigator: |
Martin, Dr DS |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Researcher Co-Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Physics |
| Organisation: |
University of Liverpool |
| Scheme: |
First Grant Scheme Pre-FEC |
| Starts: |
22 April 2004 |
Ends: |
21 April 2007 |
Value (£): |
120,164
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
| Chemical Biology |
Tissue Engineering |
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| EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications: |
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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It is important to obtain an understanding of the basic mechanisms that control protein adsorption at surfaces. Protein adsorption is important in a wide range of phenomena including the deposition of blood proteins onto biomaterial implant surfaces - a process that is critical in determining the cellular response to implanted devices. Hardly anything is known about protein conformation and reactivity at surfaces under physiological conditions in spite of the fact that most biological interactions occur at surfaces or interfaces. It is proposed in this programme to investigate protein adsorption at surfaces insitu and under physiological conditions and to investigate the susceptibility of adsorbed proteins to enzymatic degredation. Furthermore, the interaction of adsorbed proteins with surfactants will be investigated in-situ. The blood protein albumin and fibrinogen will be the focus of the study. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) will be used to image protein adsorption, aggregate growth, enzymatic degradation, and surfactant displacement. AFM will enable the controlled unfolding of albumin and fibrinogen to elucidate details of the unfolding pathways.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.liv.ac.uk |