Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
6352
pubmed:dateCreated
1992-1-2
pubmed:abstractText
The X-ray standing wave (XSW) method, developed in the 1960s, was used originally to determine heavy atom positions in and on silicon and germanium single crystals. An X-ray standing wave generated by the interference of coherent incident and reflected beams excites X-ray fluorescence from the heavy atom, the intensity of which as a function of incident angle provides an indication of the atom's distance from the X-ray reflecting surface. The availability of X-ray mirrors and the ability to prepare layered synthetic microstructures has made possible the study of biologically relevant structures using the XSW technique on length scales of typically tens to hundreds of ångströms, allowing heavy atoms in such structures to be located with ångström or subångström resolution. Many model biological systems (such as Langmuir-Blodgett films, which mimic membranes) require access to still larger scales, but it is not obvious that an XSW will remain coherent over such length scales. Here we report studies of a lipid multilayer system using the XSW method, in which we have been able to locate the metal atoms in a zinc arachidate bilayer with ångström resolution at a distance of almost 1,000 A above the surface of a gold mirror. Our results indicate that the XSW technique should be useful for structural studies of supramolecular aggregates, receptor-ligand interactions and multi-membrane stacks, in which length scales of this order are encountered.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Dec
pubmed:issn
0028-0836
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
5
pubmed:volume
354
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
377-80
pubmed:dateRevised
2006-11-15
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1991
pubmed:articleTitle
Structural studies of membranes and surface layers up to 1,000 A thick using X-ray standing waves.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Chemistry, Ohio State University, Columbus 43210.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S., Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't