Ionogel-Electrode for the Study of Protein Tunnel Junctions under Physiologically Relevant Conditions. 2023

Xiyue Bai, and Pengfei Li, and Wuxian Peng, and Ningyue Chen, and Jin-Liang Lin, and Yuan Li
Key Laboratory of Organic Optoelectronics and Molecular Engineering and Laboratory of Flexible Electronics Technology, Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084, Beijing, China.

The study of charge transport through proteins is essential for understanding complicated electrochemical processes in biological activities while the reasons for the coexistence of tunneling and hopping phenomena in protein junctions still remain unclear. In this work, a flexible and conductive ionogel electrode is synthesized and is used as a top contact to form highly reproducible protein junctions. The junctions of proteins, including human serum albumin, cytochrome C and hemoglobin, show temperature-independent electron tunneling characteristics when the junctions are in solid states while with a different mechanism of temperature-dependent electron hopping when junctions are hydrated under physiologically relevant conditions. It is demonstrated that the solvent reorganization energy plays an important role in the electron-hopping process and experimentally shown that it requires ≈100 meV for electron hopping through one heme group inside a hydrated protein molecule connected between two electrodes.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D004553 Electric Conductivity The ability of a substrate to allow the passage of ELECTRONS. Electrical Conductivity,Conductivity, Electric,Conductivity, Electrical
D004566 Electrodes Electric conductors through which electric currents enter or leave a medium, whether it be an electrolytic solution, solid, molten mass, gas, or vacuum. Anode,Anode Materials,Cathode,Cathode Materials,Anode Material,Anodes,Cathode Material,Cathodes,Electrode,Material, Anode,Material, Cathode
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D013696 Temperature The property of objects that determines the direction of heat flow when they are placed in direct thermal contact. The temperature is the energy of microscopic motions (vibrational and translational) of the particles of atoms. Temperatures

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