title: Bioactive "self-sensing" optical systems.
abstract: Free-standing silk films are useful materials to manufacture nanopatterned optical elements and to immobilize bio-dopants such as enzymes while maintaining their biological activity. These traits were combined by incorporating hemoglobin into free-standing silk diffraction gratings to fabricate chemically responsive optofluidic devices responsive to ambient gas conditions, constituting a simple oxygen sensor. This type of self-analyzing optical system is enabled by the unique ability to reproduce high-fidelity optical structures in silk while maintaining the activity of entrapped proteins such as hemoglobin. These bioactive optical devices offer a direct readout capability, adding utility into the bioresponsive material arena.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Domachuk
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.forename: Jason J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Amsden
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Kaplan
authors.forename: Fiorenzo G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Omenetto