Photoionization of Xe inside a C+60 cage: a single-molecule electron interferometer

Non-covalent single transcription factor encapsulation inside a DNA cage.

Regulation of gene expression is fundamental for cell development, maintenance, and growth. Gene regulation occurs mainly at the level of transcription, controlled primarily by DNA-binding proteins known as transcription factors (TFs). For example, the delivery of just four TFs to fully differentiated cells can cause them to revert to a stemcell-like state, offering promise for regenerative med...

A giant metallo-supramolecular cage encapsulating a single-molecule magnet.

A giant metallo-supramolecular cage encapsulating a single-molecule magnet, [Ag42{Ho(W5O18)2}(t-BuC≡C)28Cl4]OH, is prepared and structurally characterized. It shows an interesting "peanut-like" structure and remains intact in solution as demonstrated by NMR studies.

Single-molecule spectroscopy of protein folding in a chaperonin cage.

Molecular chaperones are known to be essential for avoiding protein aggregation in vivo, but it is still unclear how they affect protein folding mechanisms. We use single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer to follow the folding of a protein inside the GroEL/GroES chaperonin cavity over a time range from milliseconds to hours. Our results show that confinement in the chaperonin decelerat...

Single molecule magnet with an unpaired electron trapped between two lanthanide ions inside a fullerene

Increasing the temperature at which molecules behave as single-molecule magnets is a serious challenge in molecular magnetism. One of the ways to address this problem is to create the molecules with strongly coupled lanthanide ions. In this work, endohedral metallofullerenes Y2@C80 and Dy2@C80 are obtained in the form of air-stable benzyl monoadducts. Both feature an unpaired electron trapped b...

Single-molecule protein encapsulation in a rigid DNA cage.