Developing a Combined Mass Spectrometry-Chemometrics Approach to Study Macromolecular Large Scale Dynamics and Association

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Professor Igor Kaltashov and Dr. Stephen Eyles of the University of Massachusetts Amherst are supported by the Analytical and Surface Chemistry Program to detect and quantify multiple protein conformations present in solution, and to study protein assembly. The idea is to utilize chemometric tools such as factor analysis to interpret protein ion charge state distributions observed in electrospray ionization (ESI) mass spectra. Two processes will be studied in detail: (i) the assembly of mammalian hemoglobin and(ii) the Tanford transition and dimerization of beta-lactoglobulin. If the techniques to be developed in this project are successful, they will allow more useful information on conformations to be obtained from experimental ESI data and may simplify the process of extracting information from the data.Electrospray Ionization mass spectrometry is a major method for analyzing proteins, and is highly used in proteomics. This project has high potential for making contributions in understanding the roles of protein dynamics in protein function. Students would be well-trained in mass spectrometry and its applications to biophysics of proteins.