Purchase of an ESI/APCI Mass Spectrometer

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With support from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program, the Department of Chemistry at Tufts University will purchase an electrospray ionization (ESI) Mass Spectrometer with an atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) source. This equipment will enhance research in a number of areas including a) chemical synthesis of phosphorylated inositol-containing oligosaccharides relevant to biological signal transduction; b) studies on the influence of interfacial chemistry and primary sequence on protein conformation, self-assembly, and mesophase formation in fibrous proteins; c) self-assembly and de novo design of peptides and proteins; the design of selective, efficient switchable receptors, reagents and catalysts based on transition metal complexes; and e) the assembly of filaments and ribozyme selection. Mass spectrometry (MS) is a technique used to probe intimate structural details and to obtain the molecular compositions of a vast array of organic, bioorganic, and organometallic molecules. It is one of the fastest growing and most widely used analytical instrumentation techniques. Because of this, it is critically important for undergraduate and graduate students to be exposed to the technique. These studies will have an impact in a number of areas, especially biochemistry.