Spectroscopic and Electrochemical Studies of Bilayer Lipid Membranes Tethered to the Surface of Gold

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Abstract
This work presents the results of the structural characterization and blocking properties of thiolipid mono- and bilayers containing dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine and cholesteryl moieties tethered to a gold electrode via suitable side-chain alkanethiol molecules. Various electrochemical and spectroscopic techniques were used to evaluate the organization, thickness, and stability of both the monolayers and bilayers on the surface of polycrystalline gold electrodes. Infrared absorbance-reflectance spectroscopy, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, and Langmuir-Blodgett techniques were used to assess the molecular structure, intermolecular orientation, and fluidity of self-assembled thiolipid films on gold surface. Electrochemical measurements were used to examine the molecular integrity within the monolayers and bilayers. We demonstrate that the investigated bilayer lipid membranes attached to gold form well-blocking, well-oriented, fluid-like films that can be used in future investigations as a good model of cell membranes addressing numerous applications, ranging from the understanding of functioning of membrane integral proteins to the development of biomembrane-based sensing techniques. © 2002 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.