Single metalloproteins at work: Towards a single-protein transistor

In this article we shall present recent results and research trends in the investigation of the functional properties of surface-immobilized metalloproteins towards their exploitation for assembling hybrid biomolecular electronic nanodevices. Particularly, scanning probe microscopy studies performed at the level of single molecule in in electrochemical cell address the functional behaviour of blue-copper proteins as biomolecular switches, while a series of spectroscopic and electrochemical experiments show relevant results on functional and structural properties of these molecules arranged in monolayers. Their potential use as channels of nanometer-size hybrid bio-FET all the way down to the single molecule level is also discussed. Results on monolayer formation on substrates of different nature, their characterization, and applications are reported together with possible short- and medium-term scenarios in biomolecular electronics research.