TITLE:
Stability of M13 Phage in Organic Solvents
AUTHORS:
Pouya Moghimian, Vesna Srot, Benoit P. Pichon, Sandra J. Facey, Peter A. van Aken
KEYWORDS:
M13 Phage, Organic Solvent, Structural Integrity, Self-Assembly, Electron Microscopy
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Biomaterials and Nanobiotechnology,
Vol.7 No.2,
April
14,
2016
ABSTRACT: The effect of different types of organic solvents on the structural integrity of M13 phages has been
directly visualized by transmission and scanning electron microscopy. The exposure of M13
phages to apolar hexane had no effect on the structure of the phages for up to 8 h. In contrast,
phages showed ~10-fold contraction into rod-like I-forms and to flattened spheroids with ~12 nm
diameter upon exposure to polar organic solvents. We show that this finding can be beneficial for
the macromolecular self-assembly and in broader aspects, to enhance the spatial arrangement of
desired inorganic nanoparticles in the rapidly developing field of virotronics.