Protein unfolding, surface-mediated

The surface-mediated unfolding of proteins as measured by LC can be better visualized in Figure 4. The three major plasma proteins were chromatographed using various gradients to accelerate or delay their time of desorption. The longer their desorption was delayed (at 37 C), the greater the loss, or the smaller the amount... 

Both ellipsometry and cyclic voltammetry were used by Szucs etal to investigate both the adsorption and the mediated and unmediated electron-transfer processes of cytochrome c on gold. The adsorption of cytochrome c was studied by ellipsometry on gold electrodes that had not been treated with surface modifiers. The measurements were carried out at 400 mV (vs. NHE), which was approximately equivalent to the open-circuit potential of the system in the absence of protein in the electrolyte. An irreversibly adsorbed layer formed that completely covered the electrode. They found the value of the calculated thickness of the adsorbed layer on bare gold to be about half that expected if cytochrome c has been in its native form, which suggested that significant unfolding occurred upon adsorption. 

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