(201u) Bio-Templated Nanoparticle Synthesis: Fundamental and Theoretical Studies

Nanoparticles (NPs) as catalysts have received much attention, with biomimetic or bioinspired materials holding the promise of ultimate control over catalyst properties and enabling atomically-precise catalyst surfaces. One promising class of these NP catalysts draws upon peptide-nanoparticle interactions to guide nanoparticle assembly, where the peptide is based on naturally occurring sequences known to coordinate a metal ion (e.g. zinc finger, metalloproteases), or sequences developed through directed evolution of bio-panning. Understanding the relationship between NP morphology and peptide sequence provides a significant challenge, with the desire to predict their characteristics the focus of our work. This poster will summarize our efforts to understand the synthesis of both precious and nonprecious NPs through a combination of fundamental and theoretical studies. NPs were prepared by using peptides that include those elucidated via phage display, and modified Zn-finger sequences, respectively. Ultrafine NPs (d = 2.5 +/- 0.2 nm) were prepared that provide good surface area / volume ratio. Molecular dynamics was used to describe the interaction between NPs and peptides, in an effort to determine sequences with promising coordination chemistries that dictate morphology.