Process of making langmuir-blodgett films having photo-electronic

Abstract

Langmuir-Blodgett films having photo-electronic properties and methods of making the same. The instant films may be made, for example, by spreading a mixture of one or more types of biotinylated lipids and one or more types of electrically-conductive lipids over a water-miscible liquid subphase. Conjugated molecules comprising a biotin-binding component made up of an avidin or streptavidin molecule or a fragment or derivative thereof having biotin-binding activity and a photodynamic proteinaceous component are then injected into the subphase. Because of the affinity between biotin and the biotin-binding component, the conjugated molecules bind to the biotinylated lipids. The air-subphase interface is then compressed, causing the biotinylated lipids and electrically-conductive lipids to form a monolayer thereat. In one embodiment, the biotin-binding component has biotin-binding sites available on its underside which may be used to bind biotinylated derivatives of one or more different species of photodynamic proteinaceous components and/or to build up a multilayered complex of biotin-binding molecules and functional proteinaceous components using biotinylated rigid or flexible couplers.