title: Micro-motors: A motile bacteria based system for liposome cargo transport.
abstract: Biological micro-motors (microorganisms) have potential applications in energy utilization and nanotechnology. However, harnessing the power generated by such motors to execute desired work is extremely difficult. Here, we employ the power of motile bacteria to transport small, large, and giant unilamellar vesicles (SUVs, LUVs, and GUVs). Furthermore, we demonstrate bacteria-bilayer interactions by probing glycolipids inside the model membrane scaffold. Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) spectroscopic and microscopic methods were utilized for understanding these interactions. We found that motile bacteria could successfully propel SUVs and LUVs with a velocity of 28 μm s(-1) and 13 μm s(-1), respectively. GUVs, however, displayed Brownian motion and could not be propelled by attached bacteria. Bacterial velocity decreased with the larger loaded cargo, which agrees with our calculations of loaded bacteria swimming at low Reynolds number.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 10 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Navneet
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dogra
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 10 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Hadi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Izadi
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical &Environmental Engineering, Yale University, 10 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: T Kyle
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Vanderlick
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D001692:Biological Transport; D031541:Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000378:metabolism*; D053835:Unilamellar Liposomes / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D053835:Unilamellar Liposomes