Vmh2 hydrophobin layer entraps glucose: A quantitative characterization by label-free optical and gravimetric methods

Hydrophobins (HFBs) are peculiar proteins which self-assemble at hydrophilic-hydrophobic interfaces into amphipathic membranes, and some of them (Class I HFB) are able to form much more stable amyloid-like layers. This feature makes them suitable for many purposes, particularly when stable surface functionalization is required, also in view of their versatility in binding different kinds of molecules. For instance, it has been shown that Vmh2 from Pleurotus ostreatus (a class I HFB) is able to bind molecules like glucose, thus offering the perspective of using Vmh2 as a surface functionalization tool in bio-hybrid devices. In this paper a quantitative analysis of glucose interaction with the Vmh2 layer is reported; in particular, it is shown that Vmh2 layer swells by almost doubling its thickness as a result of glucose diffusion and each Vmh2 monomer is able to bind approximately 30 glucose molecule. These results have been achieved by self-assembling multi-layers of Vmh2 on a gold substrate and, subsequently, measuring both the mass of the bound glucose and the thickness of the resulting layer through two different and complementary techniques: quartz crystal-microbalance and ellipsometry. The data provided by the two techniques are in a satisfactory agreement and offer a plausible description of the mechanisms underlying the interaction of glucose with Vmh2 layer. This facile and versatile coating is of interest for biomedical applications of gold surfaces and particles.