title: Langmuir-Blodgett films of photosensitive proteins.
abstract: The striking properties of monolayers and multilayers of photosensitive proteins obtained by using the Langmuir-Blodgett technique are described. The close packing of the protein molecules, which preserve most of the properties found in solution, seems to be the main cause for their thermal stability, which in some cases reached a temperature of 200 degrees C without the loss of the protein secondary structure. The review is focused on three of the most intensively studied photosensitive proteins, namely photosynthetic reaction centres, bacteriorhodopsin and bovine rhodopsin, and on their possible applications as molecular optical devices.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Genova, Italy.
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Pepe
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nicolini
mesh_terms: D001436:Bacteriorhodopsins; D004735:Energy Transfer; D018462:Photobiology / Q000639:trends; D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins; D012243:Rhodopsin
chemical_list: D045322:Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex Proteins; D001436:Bacteriorhodopsins; D012243:Rhodopsin