Confocal Raman Microscopy Investigation of Phospholipid Monolayers Deposited on Nitrile-Modified Surfaces in Porous Silica Particles

Phospholipid bilayers deposited on a variety of surfaces provide models for investigation of the lipid membrane structure and supports for biocompatible sensors. Hybrid-supported phospholipid bilayers (HSLBs) are stable membrane models for these investigations, typically prepared by self-assembly of a lipid monolayer over an n -alkane-modified surface. HSLBs have been prepared on n -alkyl chain-modified silica and used for lipophilicity-based chromatographic separations. The structure of these hybrid bilayers differs from vesicle membranes where the lipid head group spacing is greater due to interdigitation of the lipid acyl chains with the underlying n -alkyl chains bound to the silica surface. This interdigitated structure exhibits a broader melting transition at a higher temperature due to strong interactions between the lipid acyl chains and the immobile n -alkyl chains bound to silica. In the present work, we seek to reduce the interactions between a lipid monolayer and its supporting substrate by self-assembly of 1,2-dimyristoyl- sn -glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) on porous silica functionalized with nitrile-terminated surface ligands. The frequency of Raman scattering of the surface -C≡N stretching mode at the lipid-nitrile interface is consistent with an n -alkane-like environment and insensitive to lipid head group charge, indicating that the lipid acyl chains are in contact with the surface nitrile groups. The head group area of this lipid monolayer was determined from the within-particle phospholipid concentration and silica specific surface area and found to be 54 ± 2 Å 2 , equivalent to the head group area of a DMPC vesicle bilayer. The structure of these nitrile-supported phospholipid monolayers was characterized below and above their melting transition by confocal Raman microscopy and found to be nearly identical to DMPC vesicle bilayers. Their narrow gel-to-fluid-phase melting transition is equivalent to dispersed DMPC vesicles, suggesting that the acyl chain structure on the nitrile support mimics the outer leaflet structure of a vesicle membrane.