SIMULATIONS OF THE ADHESION BETWEEN MOLECULARLY BONDED SURFACES IN DIRECT FORCE MEASUREMENTS

Biological materials often adhere via discrete cross bridges between r eactive molecules on opposing surfaces. The macroscopic environment an d surface properties as well as the detailed molecular characteristics of the cross bridges affect the adhesive properties of such systems. This work investigates the influence of these properties on force prob e measurements of biological materials. This was done by simulating th e dynamics of cross-bridge formation and rupture during a typical expe riment with the surface force apparatus (SFA). These simulations show how the surface curvature of the force probe, the kinetic properties o f the adhesion molecules, and the lateral mobility of the cross bridge s influence the measured forces. The role of these properties in relat ing such microscopic quantities as the strength of individual cross br idges to macroscopically observed forces is also considered. Using the same computational methodology, we also analyzed the validity of usin g the Derjaguin approximation to relate measured macroscopic surface a nd interaction free energies to cross-bridge strengths. If the lateral motion of the cross bridges is negligible, these simulations show tha t this approach is valid for typical SFA experiments. For the experime ntalist, our results provide a rationale for relating the strengths of individual adhesive bonds to macroscopic force probe measurements. (C ) 1998 American Institute of Physics.