biostudies-literatureRuz JJEuropean Research Council6051https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC7365328biostudies-literatureUnknown4There is an emerging need of nanotools able to quantify the mechanical properties of single biological entities. A promising approach is the measurement of the shifts of the resonant frequencies of ultrathin cantilevers induced by the adsorption of the studied biological systems. Here, we present a detailed theoretical analysis to calculate the resonance frequency shift induced by the mechanical stiffness of viral nanotubes. The model accounts for the high surface-to-volume ratio featured by single biological entities, the shape anisotropy and the interfacial adhesion. The model is applied to the case in which tobacco mosaic virus is randomly delivered to a silicon nitride cantilever. The theoretical framework opens the door to a novel paradigm for biological spectrometry as well as for measuring the Young's modulus of biological systems with minimal strains.Scientific reportsPhysics of nanomechanical spectrometry of viruses.PMC7365328278860Calleja MPini VKosaka PMRuz JJTamayo JfalsePhysics of nanomechanical spectrometry of viruses.There is an emerging need of nanotools able to quantify the mechanical properties of single biological entities. A promising approach is the measurement of the shifts of the resonant frequencies of ultrathin cantilevers induced by the adsorption of the studied biological systems. Here, we present a detailed theoretical analysis to calculate the resonance frequency shift induced by the mechanical stiffness of viral nanotubes. The model accounts for the high surface-to-volume ratio featured by single biological entities, the shape anisotropy and the interfacial adhesion. The model is applied to the case in which tobacco mosaic virus is randomly delivered to a silicon nitride cantilever. The theoretical framework opens the door to a novel paradigm for biological spectrometry as well as for measuring the Young's modulus of biological systems with minimal strains.2014-01-01T00:00:00Z2014 Aug2025-05-29T19:54:50.723Z2024-11-06T11:27:46.007ZS-EPMC73653282511647810.1038/srep06051