Hi,
We've put proteins through covalent immobilization on gold paticles on substrates and would like to store the substrates longterm. I've seen that vendors often sell pre-conjugated AuNP-proteins, for example streptavidin-coated particles, in dry form. I was just curious if anyone had any expectation of if the drying can degrade or destroy the proteins? Particularly, would pumping the air out and storing under vacuum damage the proteins? Are there any special protocols for conjugate-AuNP drying?
Thanks
I do not feel that drying the AuNPs-protein nanoconjugate under vacuum can damage the proteins. But, certainly if you dry the proteins conjugated AuNPs by heat, it can cause protein degradation.
One of the main purpose of drying is to improve protein stability (thermal, storage, etc). However, during the process, removal of water from the protein environment may change the protein conformation, depending on the degree of the denaturing conditions(temperature, humidity, etc) and the type of protein. If we can minimise/eliminate the effect of these denaturing conditions, the protein functional properties can be preserved. In my opinion, it is better to do analysis to study the storage stability of the AuNPs-protein conjugate (for example, compare the protein activity at day 1 to day 30).
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