Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Electrical control of kinesin–microtubule motility using a transparent functionalized-graphene substrate

Eunji Kim, Kyung-Eun Byun, Dong Shin Choi, Dong Jun Lee, Duck Hyung Cho, Byung Yang Lee, Heejun Yang, Jinseong Heo, Hyun-Jong Chung, Sunae Seo and Seunghun Hong



We report a new strategy to selectively localize and control microtubule translocation via electrical control of microtubules using a microfabricated channel on a functionalized-graphene electrode with high transparency and conductivity. A patterned S U -8 film acts as an insulation layer which shields the electrical field generated by the graphene underneath while the localized electric field on the exposed graphene surface guides the negatively charged microtubules. This is the first report showing that functionalized graphene can support and control microtubule motility.



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