Molecular dynamics simulations of peptide adsorption on self-assembled monolayers

Abstract

All-atom molecular dynamics simulations are performed to investigate the neuromedin-B peptide adsorption on the self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of SH(CH2)10N+(CH3)2CH2CH(OH)CH2SO3− (SBT), SH(CH2)10OH and SH(CH2)10CH3. The force–distance profiles show that the surface resistance to peptide adsorption is mainly generated by the water molecules tightly bound to surfaces via hydrogen bonds (hydration water molecules); but surfaces themselves may also set an energy barrier for the approaching peptide. For the SBT-SAM, the surface first exerts a relatively high repulsive force and then a rather week attractive force on the approaching peptide; meanwhile the hydration water molecules exert a strong repulsive force on the peptide. Therefore, SBT-SAM has an excellent performance on resisting protein adsorption. For the OH-SAM and CH3-SAM, surfaces show low or little energy barrier but strong affinity to the peptide; and the hydration water molecules apply merely a repulsive force within a much narrower range and with lower intensity compared with the case for the SBT-SAM. The analysis of structural and dynamical properties of the peptide, surface and water indicates that possible factors contributing to surface resistance include the hydrogen-bond formation capability of surfaces, mobility of water molecules near surfaces, surface packing density and chain flexibility of SAMs. There are a large number of hydrogen bonds formed between the hydration water molecules and the functional groups of the SBT-SAM, which greatly lowers the mobility of water molecules near the surface. This tightly-bound water layer effectively reduces the direct contact between the surface and the peptide. Furthermore, the SBT-SAM also has a high flexibility and a low surface packing density, which allows water molecules to penetrate into the surface to form tightly-bound networks and therefore reduces the affinity between the peptide and the surface. The results show that the protein-resistant properties of the SAMs are in the decreasing order of SBT-SAM>OH-SAM>CH3-SAM, which provide mechanistic explanation on SBT materials’ excellent anti-fouling performance.