Manipulation of Origin of Life Molecules: Recognizing Single-Molecule Conformations in β-Carotene and Chlorophyll-a/β-Carotene Clusters,ACS Nano

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Manipulation of Origin of Life Molecules: Recognizing Single-Molecule Conformations in β-Carotene and Chlorophyll-a/β-Carotene Clusters
ACS Nano ( IF 15.8 ) Pub Date : 2018-01-11 00:00:00 , DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.7b05841
Anh T. Ngo , Timur Skeini ₁ , Violeta Iancu ₁ , Paul C. Redfern , Larry A. Curtiss , Saw Wai Hla ₁

Affiliation

Carotenoids and chlorophyll are essential parts of plant leaves and are involved in photosynthesis, a vital biological process responsible for the origin of life on Earth. Here, we investigate how β-carotene and chlorophyll-a form mixed molecular phases on a Au(111) surface using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and molecular manipulation at the single-molecule level supported by density functional theory calculations. By isolating individual molecules from nanoscale molecular clusters with a scanning tunneling microscope tip, we are able to identify five β-carotene conformations including a structure exhibiting a three-dimensional conformation. Furthermore, molecular resolution images enable direct visualization of β-carotene/chlorophyll-a clsuters, with intimate structural details highlighting how they pair: β-carotene preferentially positions next to chlorophyll-a and induces switching of chlorophyll-a from straight to several bent tail conformations in the molecular clusters.

中文翻译：

生命分子起源的操纵：识别β-胡萝卜素和叶绿素-a /β-胡萝卜素簇中的单分子构象。

类胡萝卜素和叶绿素是植物叶片的重要组成部分，并参与光合作用，光合作用是决定地球生命起源的重要生物过程。在这里，我们使用密度泛函理论计算支持的低温扫描隧道显微镜和单分子水平的分子操作研究β-胡萝卜素和叶绿素a如何在Au（111）表面上形成混合分子相。通过使用扫描隧道显微镜尖端从纳米级分子簇中分离单个分子，我们能够鉴定出五个β-胡萝卜素构象，包括具有三维构象的结构。此外，分子分辨率图像可直接显示β-胡萝卜素/叶绿素a丛菌，并通过密切的结构细节突出显示它们如何配对：

更新日期：2018-01-11

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