The controlled incorporation of polypeptides and proteins into micropatterened lipid mono- and bilayers on solid supports provide important understanding of the structural organization of membrane components and have potential applications in such fields as biosensors and mol. electronics. The prepn. of the structures is done by applying either photolithog. or Langmuir-Blodgett technique, both combined with the self-assembly of sulfur-bearing lipids. Two examples of structured gold surfaces are reported adressing (i) antigenic peptides by terminal gold-attached cysteines demonstrating patterned antibody binding to surfaces, and (ii) natural ligand-gated ion channels and G-protein-coupled receptor proteins realizing a functional active receptor protein on solid supports. Binding reactions and receptor activation were investigated by surface plasmon resonance microscopy and elec. impedance. [on SciFinder (R)]