NMR spectroscopy of encapsulated proteins dissolved in low-viscosity fluids is emerging as a tool for biophysical studies of proteins in atomic detail in a variety of otherwise inaccessible contexts. The central element of the approach is the encapsulation of the protein of interest within the aqueous core of a reverse micelle with high structural fidelity. The process of encapsulation is highl...

Water dynamics inside of reverse micelles made from the surfactant Aerosol-OT (AOT) were investigated by observing spectral diffusion, orientational relaxation, and population relaxation using two-dimensional infrared (2D IR) vibrational echo spectroscopy and pump-probe experiments. The water pool sizes of the reverse micelles studied ranged in size from 5.8 to 1.7 nm in diameter. It is found t...

Large quantities (>3 g) of a new series of alkyl uronates were synthesized in two steps from commercial methyl hexopyranosides. Firstly, several tens of grams of free methyl α-d-glucopyranoside were selectively and quantitatively oxidized into corresponding sodium uronate using 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy free radical (TEMPO)-catalyzed oxidation. Hydrophobic chains of different length ...

The dynamics of water in nanoscopic pools 1.7-4.0 nm in diameter in AOT reverse micelles were studied with ultrafast infrared spectrally resolved stimulated vibrational echo and pump-probe spectroscopies. The experiments were conducted on the OD hydroxyl stretch of low-concentration HOD in the H2O, providing a direct examination of the hydrogen-bond network dynamics. Pump-probe experiments show...

The structural properties of micelles formed by the non-ionic surfactant, Triton X-114 (TX-114), were investigated using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Additionally, we effect solubilisation sodium salts two nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, ibuprofen and indomethacin, upon TX-114 micelles. micelle in absence drugs has an aspherical shape. We find that as continues to solubil...

Structural transitions involving shape changes play an important role in cellular physiology. Such transition can be conveniently induced in charged micelles by increasing ionic strength of the medium. Shape changes have recently been shown to result in altered packing and lowering of micellar polarity. As a consequence of reduced polarity, the ionization states of micelle-bound molecules vary ...

Many of the difficulties presented by large, aggregation-prone, and membrane proteins to modern solution NMR spectroscopy can be alleviated by actively seeking to increase the effective rate of molecular reorientation. An emerging approach involves encapsulating the protein of interest within the protective shell of a reverse micelle and dissolving the resulting particle in a low viscosity flui...

Structure of nonionic surfactant diglycerol monomyristate (C14G2) micelles in cyclohexane has been investigated by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) technique. Structural modulation of reverse micelle (RM) has been systematically studied by changing composition, temperature change and added-water. The SAXS data were evaluated by the generalized indirect Fourier transformation (GIFT) method, w...

We demonstrate the use of copolymer micelle lithography using polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine) reverse micelle thin films in their as-coated form to create nanopillars with tunable dimensions and spacing, on different substrates such as silicon, silicon oxide, silicon nitride and quartz. The promise of the approach as a versatile application oriented platform is highlighted by demonstrat...