Observing single protein with infrared nanospectroscopy

Milestone toward ultra-high sensitivity and super-resolution infrared imaging

2024-01-10

(Press-News.org) Infrared vibrational spectrum of a single protein is observed using advanced measurement techniques based on near-field optical microscopy. This method utilizes light confined at the nanometer scale, allowing for the detailed analysis of extremely small samples, which was previously challenging with conventional infrared spectroscopy. The achievement represents a major advancement towards technological innovations such as ultra-sensitive and super-resolution infrared imaging, as well as single-molecule vibrational spectroscopy.

Infrared spectroscopy is widely used for the structural and chemical analysis of various materials as it can measure vibrational spectra, often referred to as the "molecular fingerprints". The rapid development of nanotechnology in recent years has led to increasing demand for ultra-high sensitivity and super-resolution infrared imaging. However, conventional infrared spectroscopy is limited in measuring extremely small samples or achieving nanometer-scale spatial resolution. For example, even infrared microspectroscopy with good sensitivity requires over a million proteins for obtaining an infrared spectrum, rendering it impossible to measure just a single protein.

An interdisciplinary research team, led by Jun Nishida (Assistant Prof.) and Takashi Kumagai (Associate Prof.) at Institute for Molecular Science, has successfully observed vibrational spectra of single proteins, consisting of ~500 amino acid residues, using advanced measurement techniques based on near-field optical microscopy. This method utilizes light confined at the nanometer scale, allowing for the detailed analysis of extremely small samples, which is challenging with conventional infrared spectroscopy.

In their study, the research team isolated a single protein, a sub-unit comprising a protein complex called F1-ATPase, on a gold substrate and performed near-field infrared spectroscopy measurements in an ambient environment. They successfully acquired the infrared vibrational spectrum of a single protein, representing a major advance that may lead to characterizing local structural organizations of individual proteins. Such information is particularly important for understanding the sophisticated functions of protein complexes and membrane proteins, offering deeper insights into their mechanisms and interactions. Furthermore, they have developed a new theoretical framework describing the nanoscale interactions between the infrared near field and protein. Based on the theory, the team was able to quantitatively reproduce the experimental vibrational spectra that they observed. These results will be invaluable for the chemical analysis of biomolecules as well as various nanomaterials, paving the way for a range of applications of nanoscale infrared spectroscopy.

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Volume of grey brain matter significantly lower in people with Early Onset Psychosis

2024-01-10

New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience has found an association between a reduction in grey matter in the brain and Early Onset Psychosis (EOP). The study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, is the largest ever brain imaging study in EOP and has provided unprecedented levels of detail about the illness. It shows that, in contrast to other mental health disorders, people with EOP have a reduced volume of grey matter across nearly all regions of their brain. Researchers hope that this detailed mapping ...

Duke-NUS scientists discover potential nasal COVID-19 vaccine candidate that offers better and longer protection

2024-01-10

Novel findings from a preclinical head-to-head comparison show that administering a COVID-19 vaccine as a nasal spray rather than a subcutaneous injection enhances the body’s long-term immune memory, thereby increasing the vaccine’s overall effectiveness. This research could pave the way for a COVID-19 vaccination strategy that depends on fewer boosters to achieve the same level of protection against SARS-CoV-2 viruses. SINGAPORE, 10 January 2024 – A team of scientists, led by Duke-NUS Medical School, has discovered a potential intranasal vaccine candidate that provides improved, ...

Traumatic stress associated with smaller brain region

2024-01-10

DURHAM, N.C. – Adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have smaller cerebellums, according to new research from a Duke-led brain imaging study. The cerebellum, a part of the brain well known for helping to coordinate movement and balance, can influence emotion and memory, which are impacted by PTSD. What isn’t known yet is whether a smaller cerebellum predisposes a person to PTSD or PTSD shrinks the brain region. “The differences were largely within the posterior lobe, where a lot of the more cognitive functions attributed to the cerebellum seem to localize, as well as the vermis, which is linked to a lot of emotional processing ...

Largest diversity study of ‘magic mushrooms’ investigates the evolution of psychoactive psilocybin production

2024-01-10

Psilocybe fungi, known colloquially as “magic mushrooms,” have held deep significance in Indigenous cultures of Mesoamerica for centuries. They captured the wider world’s attention as a psychedelic staple in the 60s and 70s. Now, these infamous organisms are at the forefront of a mental health revolution. Psilocybin and psilocin, the psychoactive compounds found in nearly all species of Psilocybe, have shown promise as a treatment for conditions including PTSD, depression, and for easing end-of-life care. To ...

Sex-specific panel of 10 proteins can pick up 18 different early stage cancers

2024-01-10

A sex-specific panel of 10 proteins can pick up 18 different early stage cancers, representing all the major organs of the human body, finds a proof of concept study published in the open access journal BMJ Oncology. The findings could kick-start a new generation of screening tests for early detection of the disease, say the researchers, particularly as there are many sex specific differences in cancer—including age at occurrence, cancer types, and genetic alterations—points out a linked editorial. Cancer accounts for 1 in every 6 deaths around the globe, with nearly 60% of these deaths ...

Predominantly plant-based or vegetarian diet linked to 39% lower odds of COVID-19

2024-01-10

A predominantly plant-based or vegetarian diet is linked to 39% lower odds of COVID-19 infection, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health. The findings prompt the researchers to suggest that a diet high in vegetables, legumes, and nuts, and low in dairy products and meat may help to ward off the infection. Several studies have suggested that diet may have an important role in the evolution of COVID-19 infection, as well as in the factors that heighten the risk of its associated ...

Early menopause and HRT among hormonal factors linked to heightened rheumatoid arthritis risk

2024-01-10

Early menopause—before the age of 45—taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT), and having 4 or more children are among several hormonal and reproductive factors linked to a heightened risk of rheumatoid arthritis in women, finds a large long term study published in the open access journal RMD Open. Women are more susceptible to this autoimmune disease than men, note the researchers. They are 4–5 times as likely as men to develop rheumatoid arthritis under the age of 50, and twice as likely to do so between the ages of 60 and 70. And the disease seems to take a greater physical toll on women than it does on men. While ...

City of Hope Children’s Cancer Center, Children’s Oncology Group conduct largest clinical trial seeking to prevent heart failure among childhood cancer survivors

2024-01-10

LOS ANGELES — Physicians at City of Hope, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States, in cooperation with the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), have conducted the largest clinical trial to date seeking to reduce the risk of people who have survived childhood cancer from developing heart failure. The findings published in The Lancet Oncology show that the blood vessel relaxing medication carvedilol is safe for childhood cancer survivors to take and may improve important markers of heart injury sustained as a result of chemotherapy exposure. One devastating ...

New research sheds light on an old fossil solving an evolutionary mystery

2024-01-10

New York, January 9, 2024 — A research paper published in Royal Society’s Biology Letters on January 10 has revealed that picrodontids —an extinct family of placental mammals that lived several million years after the extinction of the dinosaurs—are not primates as previously believed. The paper—co-authored by Jordan Crowell, an Anthropology Ph.D. candidate at the CUNY Graduate Center; Stephen Chester, an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center; ...

No laughing matter: Leadership critical to help address NHS retention crisis

2024-01-10

Frontline healthcare workers in busy hospitals feel that they are “just rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic” according to new research into the impact of under-resourced and high-pressure emergency hospital departments in the UK. A study from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine and University of Bath, led by clinical psychologist Dr Jo Daniels in collaboration with colleagues at UWE Bristol and the University of Bristol, argues that hospitals need better leadership to help change cultures and support people’s basic needs. In addition to reflections ...

Observing single protein with infrared nanospectroscopy

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: