Abstract
The interactions of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) with ferritin protein in water were investigated. It was found that SWNTs are naturally protein-affinitive in an aqueous ferritin solution, resulting in significant ferritin-SWNT conjugation and the solubilization of the nanotubes. The conjugation is further enhanced and stabilized in the presence of a coupling agent for amidation to promote the formation of covalent linkages. The natural protein-affinity of SWNTs may be alleviated or even eliminated by the functionalization of the nanotubes with hydrophilic polymers or better with oligomeric poly(ethylene glycol) moieties.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 3760-3764 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Journal of Physical Chemistry B |
Volume | 108 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 25 2004 |