Strength of Non-Covalent Biomolecular Interactions Probed at the Microsecond Timescale

Abstract

We have measured strength of non-covalent interactions at the microsecond timescale by using a recently developed high-speed force spectroscopy technique. The resulting loading rates narrow the gap between time scales of experimental methods and molecular dynamics simulations substantially. Measurements on biotin-streptavidin complexes provide direct experimental verification of forces predicted by steered molecular dynamics simulations [1]. This technique uses a T-shaped atomic force microscope cantilever with its tip placed offset from the longitudinal axis [2,3].