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Updated: Jun 10, 2026

Reconstitution of Septin Assembly at Membranes to Study Biophysical Properties and Functions
Published on: July 28, 2022
Transport, separation, and accumulation of proteins on supported lipid bilayers
J Neumann1, M Hennig, A Wixforth
1Center for NanoScience CeNS, Universität Augsburg, Institut für Physik Universitätsstrasse 1, D-86159 Augsburg, Germany.
Abstract:
Transport, separation, and accumulation of proteins in their natural environment are central goals in protein biotechnology. Miniaturized assays of supported lipid bilayers (SLBs) have been proposed as promising candidates to realize such technology on a chip, but a modular system for the controlled transport of membrane proteins does not exist. In this letter, we demonstrate that standing surface acoustic waves drive the in-plane redistribution of proteins on planar SLBs over macroscopic distances (3.5 mm). Accumulation of proteins in periodic patterns of about 10-fold protein concentration difference is accomplished and shown to relax into the homogeneous state by diffusion. Different proteins separate in individual fractions from a homogeneous distribution and are transported and accumulated into clusters using beats. The modular planar setup has the potential of integrating other lab-on-a-chip tools, for monitoring the membrane-protein integrity or adding microfluidic features for blood screening or DNA analysis.
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