Protein crystallization on polymeric film surfaces

Polymeric films containing ionizable groups, such as sulfonated polystyrene, cross-linked gelatin films with adsorbed poly-L-lysine or entrapped poly-L-aspartate and silk fibroin with entrapped poly-L-lysine or poly-L-aspartate, have been tested as heterogeneous nucleant surfaces for proteins. Concanavalin A from jack bean and chicken egg-white lysozyme were used as models. It was found that the crystallization of concanavalin A by the vapor diffusion technique, is strongly influenced by the presence of ionizable groups on the film surface. Both the induction time and protein concentration necessary for the crystal nucleation decrease whereas the nucleation density increases on going from the reference siliconized cover slip to the uncharged polymeric surfaces and even more to the charged ones. Non-specific attractive and local interactions between the protein and the film surface might promote molecular collisions and the clustering with the due symmetry for the formation of the crystal nuclei. The results suggest that the studied polymeric film surfaces could be particularly useful for the crystallization of proteins from solutions at low starting concentration, thus using small quantities of protein, and for proteins with very long crystallization time. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.