Study of Dynamics on the Interfaces of Carbon-Based Nanomaterials and Nanobiosensor
type: CreativeWork
description: Carbon-based nanomaterials have promising applications spanning areas from the oil industry to healthcare due to their special attributes to interface with molecules in their local environments. The investigation on nano-interfaces can open in-depth visions of chemical, physical and biological mechanisms that mediate the functions of the nanodevices designed for drug delivery and biodetection. To study properties of the surface at nanoscales poses challenges to current detection techniques, such as infrared absorption spectroscopy (IR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). They are either not appropriate for detecting materials in aqueous environments or lack of ability to resolve dynamics at the interface with a sufficient temporal recording rate. The computation technology fueled by the latest progress in software and hardware has shown capabilities to accurately simulate molecular binding processes in biophysics for instance. In this study, we seek the power of molecular dynamics simulation and computational docking to analyze the dynamics at various nano-interfaces including graphene amphiphilic Janus nanosheet (AJN), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and CNT array biosensor. Rational design of the functional interface is explored by comparison of experimental results and the theoretical predictions. In the study of AJN, we discovered (1) a facile, cheap, and scalable synthesis method of AJN with graphene oxide and tapioca starch, and (2) an additive poly (sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS) that improves the stability of AJN in brine. Regarding the study of biocompatibility and biodegradation mechanism of CNTs, we found that immunoglobulin G (IgG) was susceptible to bind with CNTs that could contribute to reduce CNTs’ cytotoxicity and accelerate their biodegradation. In the biorecognition study, we identified an array of phenolic oligomers with different polymerization structures could facilitate the interaction with the protein template and self-assemble to form rec…
abstract: Carbon-based nanomaterials have promising applications spanning areas from the oil industry to healthcare due to their special attributes to interface with molecules in their local environments. The investigation on nano-interfaces can open in-depth visions of chemical, physical and biological mechanisms that mediate the functions of the nanodevices designed for drug delivery and biodetection. To study properties of the surface at nanoscales poses challenges to current detection techniques, such as infrared absorption spectroscopy (IR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). They are either not appropriate for detecting materials in aqueous environments or lack of ability to resolve dynamics at the interface with a sufficient temporal recording rate. The computation technology fueled by the latest progress in software and hardware has shown capabilities to accurately simulate molecular binding processes in biophysics for instance. In this study, we seek the power of molecular dynamics simulation and computational docking to analyze the dynamics at various nano-interfaces including graphene amphiphilic Janus nanosheet (AJN), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and CNT array biosensor. Rational design of the functional interface is explored by comparison of experimental results and the theoretical predictions. In the study of AJN, we discovered (1) a facile, cheap, and scalable synthesis method of AJN with graphene oxide and tapioca starch, and (2) an additive poly (sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS) that improves the stability of AJN in brine. Regarding the study of biocompatibility and biodegradation mechanism of CNTs, we found that immunoglobulin G (IgG) was susceptible to bind with CNTs that could contribute to reduce CNTs’ cytotoxicity and accelerate their biodegradation. In the biorecognition study, we identified an array of phenolic oligomers with different polymerization structures could facilitate the interaction with the protein template and self-assemble to form rec…
author: Chen, Jianfa 1989-
language: eng
keywords: Nanodevice, Carbon nanotubes, Computational methods
date published: 2017-08
date modified: 2026-07-24T02:33:06Z
provider: University of Houston
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Houston

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/10657/4805