Functional Imaging: Atomic Force Imaging using probes functionalized with modified enzymes.

保持清洁需要大量的能源，地球上的每个人都使用能源来保持衣服清洁，这对环境提出了巨大的要求。目前的清洁洗涤剂是一种复杂的化学和生物成分，但就其清洁成分而言，但可以广泛地认为含有(i)表面活性剂，以溶解织物基污渍；（ii）酶消化污渍和（iii）漂白剂来降解和增加有色污渍的亲水性。在这个项目中，我们使用原子力显微镜来研究单个酶是如何消化染色的。原子力显微镜将测量酶和油表面之间的相互作用强度。一旦我们了解了这个过程，我们将利用这些知识来修改酶，使它们能够在较低的温度下工作。这些修饰酶将在典型洗涤循环条件下使用原子力显微镜进行研究，这将使我们能够进一步提高酶的效率。

Keeping things clean requires large amounts of energy, everyone on the planet uses energy to keep cloths clean and this puts a huge demand on the environment. Current cleaning detergents are a complex chemical and biological components, but in terms of their cleaning composition but can broadly be considered to contain (i) surfactants to solubilise fabric-based stains; (ii) enzymes to digest stains and (iii) bleaches to degrade and increase the hydrophillicity of coloured stains. In this project we use an atomic force microscope to study how individual enzymes digest stains. The atomic force microscope will measure the interaction strength between an enzyme and an oil surface. Once we have an understanding of this process we will use this knowledge to modify the enzymes in order to allow them to work at lower temperatures. These modified enzymes will be studied using the atomic force microscope under the conditions the enzymes would face in a typical washing cycle, this will allow us to further improve the efficiency of the enzyme.