Interaction study on bovine serum albumin physically binding to silver nanoparticles: Evolution from discrete conjugates to protein coronas

With the non-uniform coating of amphiphilic polymer, the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) can form protein coronas which can become discrete protein-nanoparticle conjugates when controlling the protein-nanoparticle molar ratios. The protein's conformational changes upon binding NPs was also studied by both circular dichroism and three-dimensional fluorescence spectroscopy.