Characterization of poly-L-lysine adsorption onto alkanethiol-modified gold surfaces with polarization-modulation Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and surface plasmon resonance measurements

The electrostatic adsorption of poly-L-lysine molecules onto a vapor-deposited gold film modified with a carboxylic acid-terminated alkanethiol monolayer is monitored with the spectroscopic techniques of polarization-modulation Fourier transform infrared (PM-FTIR) spectroscopy and surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The PM-ITIR spectrum of a monolayer of poly-L-lysine (PL) adsorbed onto a self-assembled monolayer of 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) indicates that the lysine residues and the MUA carboxylic acid moieties form ammonium-carboxylate ion pairs which electrostatically bind the polypeptide to the surface. The PL molecules can be desorbed from the surface by rinsing with a buffer solution at a pH that destroys the ion pairing (pH 12). Measurements of the shift in the SPR angle upon adsorption were used to determine the thicknesses of the adsorbed monolayers; the MUA and PL monolayers were found to be 17.0 and 10.5 A thick, respectively. These thickness results suggest that the poly-L-lysine monolayer adsorbs onto the packed MUA surface in an extended conformation with the PL backbone lying parallel to the surface. Subsequent exposure ofthe PL monolayer to a solution ofiron phthalocyanine tetracarboxylic acid (FePc) resulted in the adsorption of a third layer onto the surface. The ability of the adsorbed PL molecules to interact with FePc indicates the presence of free lysine residues available for interaction with molecules other than the MUA monolayer.