Protein Nanocage Morphology Analysis
Protein nanocages are symmetric nanostructures with a cavity formed by self-assembling subunits. The nanometer size and the unique shape of protein nanocages play an important role in their biochemical properties and are necessitated in the development of them as drug nanocarriers, vaccines, and imaging agents. Diverse techniques have been established to characterize protein nanocage morphology. For example, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are powerful tools to directly observe the appearance of protein nanocages. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) visualizes the surface of protein nanocages. At Creative BioMart Nanocage, we have high-end instruments covering all these techniques to comprehensively characterize protein nanocage morphology. Mechanisms, sample preparation, and applications of these services are listed below.
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM)
Mechanism: TEM operates on the same basic principles as the light microscope but uses a beam of high-energy electrons (60 to 350 keV) instead. The beam of electrons transmit the sample and interact with it to form an image of the sample. The image is then magnified, projected on a screen, and captured by a camera. TEM samples must be thin enough for electrons to pass through. Sample thickness is usually below 100 nm. The spatial resolution of TEM can reach up to the atomic level. TEM captures 2D images of protein nanocage cross-section, revealing information about the features of inner structure.
Accepted samples: Protein nanocages in solutions and lyophilized protein nanocages.
Sample preparation: Support grids are used in protein nanocage sample preparation. We provide copper and molybdenum square girds with 200 mesh, 300 mesh, and 400 mesh. Grids coated with different thicknesses of carbon film are available. We use uranyl acetate as the default staining reagent. Phosphotungstic acid is also provided.
Applications: Size distribution analysis of protein nanocages, aggregation detection.
Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)
Mechanism: The difference of SEM in comparison with TEM is that it detects the reflected electrons rather than the transmitted electrons. It has a spatial resolution of around 0.5 nm, lower than that of TEM. Sample thickness is not strictly required as in TEM analysis.
Accepted samples: Protein nanocages in solutions and lyophilized protein nanocages.
Sample preparation: Sample preparation may differ for different protein nanocages, please contact us through online inquiry for details.
Applications: Size detection of protein nanocages, surface structure analysis of protein nanocages.
Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM)
Mechanism: AFM uses a highly sensitive probe with a very sharp tip to scan and image the surface of the sample. The images obtained are 3D images.
Accepted samples: Protein nanocages in solutions and lyophilized protein nanocages.
Sample preparation: Incubation of protein nanocage solution on a mica substrate and then rinsing sample with a proper buffer. Condition optimization is included in sample preparation.
Applications: Surface structure analysis of protein nanocages, size distribution analysis.
Service Procedure
Fig 1. Workflow of Protein Nanocage Morphology Analysis
If you are interested in our protein nanocage morphology analysis, please let us know your project aim and requests through online inquiry. We will respond to you promptly and offer suggestions on sample pretreatment and sample delivery. We guarantee a high resolution of the final images and a detailed discussion of the characterization results on the final report.
