Fabrication of hierarchical nanostructured BSA/ZnO hybrid nanoflowers by a self-assembly process

Abstract

Here we present a novel and simple method to fabricate hierarchical nanostructured bovine serum albumin (BSA)/ZnO hybrids based on the assembly of biological proteins and metal ions. The as-fabricated hybrids that are comprised of individual microrods possess self-organized flowerlike architectures with sizes ranging from 400 to 600mm. The UV–vis spectra depicted that the absorption peak of BSA/ZnO hybrids was blue-shifted as compared to the bare ZnO nanorods due to the enhanced surface effects. This new protein–inorganic hybrid and the design strategy are expected to be applicable to the synthesis of other 3D biohybrid materials for potential applications in biocatalysis, biosensors and nonlinear-optical devices.