Controlled Molecular Organization of Surface Macromolecular Assemblies Based on Stimuli-Responsive Polypeptide Brushes

End-tethered cationic polypeptide brushes of poly(L-lysine) (t-PLL) were combined with three anionic polymers, poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), poly(L-glutamic acid) (PLGA), and poly(L-aspartic acid) (PLAA), to form reversible polyelectrolyte complex films at surfaces at neutral pH. The polyelectrolyte complex formation was confirmed by an in situ zeta-potential study and by positive fluorescent images after adding prelabeled anionic polymers. The secondary conformations of the t-PLL complex films depend upon the specific polyelectrolyte with which t-PLL was coupled as studied by circular dichroism and FTIR. Specifically, the random coil chain configuration of the t-PLL film was converted to an cc-helical, P-sheet, or random coil structure after forming complexes with PAA, PLGA, or PLAA, respectively. Each of these complexes could be returned to the original random coil t-PLL structure by a dilute acid rinse. Additional thickness and morphological studies from ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy have further shown that the corresponding film thicknesses of the individual solvated films were affected more by the secondary structures in films than by the adsorbed mass or surface net charges. The solvated thickness was reduced significantly after the random coil t-PLL film was coupled with polyanions in forming compact regulated structures in films. This biomimetic approach provides a new opportunity for controlling the molecular organization in surface macromolecular assemblies and may provide a model for structural study of protein complexes on a chip.