A Single Spherical Assembly of Protein Amyloid Fibrils Formed by Laser Trapping

Protein amyloids have received much attention owing to their correlation with serious diseases and to their promising mechanical and optical properties as future materials. Amyloid formation has been conducted by tuning temperature and chemical conditions, so that its nucleation and the following growth are analyzed as ensemble dynamics. A single spherical assembly of amyloid fibrils of cytochrome c domain‐swapped dimer was successfully generated upon laser trapping. The amyloid fibrillar structure was confirmed by fluorescence characterization and electron microscopy. The prepared spheres were further manipulated individually in solution to fabricate a three‐dimensional microstructure and a line pattern. Amyloid formation dynamics and amyloid‐based microstructure fabrication are demonstrated based on direct observation of a single spherical assembly, which foresees a new approach in amyloid studies. It's a trap! The domain‐swapped dimer of cyt c is assembled and laser‐trapped in a spatio‐temporally controlled manner (see picture, left). Nucleation and growth leads to the single spherical assembly of amyloid fibrils (right). Amyloid formation dynamics and amyloid‐based micro‐structure fabrication are demonstrated, which foresees a new approach in amyloid studies.