Purchase of Analytical Ultracentrifuge for Molecular Biophysics at Florida State

描述（由申请人提供）：申请购买一台分析超离心机的资金，以提高佛罗里达州立大学物理生物化学的研究能力。该仪器将被安置在物理生物化学设施中，这是一个位于分子生物物理研究所的集中设施，为化学和生物化学系、生物科学系和分子生物物理系的教师、学生和博士后提供服务。该设施配备了一名全职研究教员，其薪金由大学支付，而不是由用户付费，因此为用户提供了大量支助。NIH资助的项目将通过该设备得到加强，包括：从白喉链杆菌、结核分枝杆菌和炭疽芽孢杆菌中获得的抑制蛋白的金属活化，包括snoRNPs的蛋白质- rna复合物的组装，结核分枝杆菌膜蛋白的结构生物学，表征HIV-1和SIV包膜（Env）表面（gp120）和跨膜（gp41）糖蛋白的天然和配体结合构象的3-D形态，昆虫飞行肌肉的3-D结构和组装，表征细胞粘附复合物的结构，以及表征细胞生长因子与肝素的相互作用。除了这些重大项目外，离心机还将潜在地有利于佛罗里达州立大学分子生物物理研究所和其他参与生物分子研究的部门的其他教师的研究。新仪器将提高我们教师的研究能力和生产力，并为生物学系、化学与生物化学系和分子生物物理系的研究生和博士后提供培训机会。相关性：分析性超离心是一种用于表征溶液中生物分子大小和形状的方法。该仪器将被研究人员用于定义涉及肌肉收缩、RNA翻译后修饰、转录调控和膜蛋白离子通道的重要生物大分子复合物的化学计量学和组装能量学。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Funds are requested for the purchase of an analytical ultracentrifuge to enhance the research capabilities in physical biochemistry at Florida State University. The instrument will be housed in the Physical Biochemistry Facility, a centralized facility located in the Institute of Molecular Biophysics, that serves faculty, students, and postdoctoral associates in the Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Biological Sciences, and Molecular Biophysics. This facility is staffed by a full-time research faculty member whose salary is paid for by the University, not by user fees, thereby providing substantial support for users. NIH funded projects that will be enhanced by this equipment include: metal activation of repressor proteins obtained from Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Bacillus anthracis, the assembly of protein-RNA complexes comprising snoRNPs, structural biology of membrane proteins from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, characterizing the 3-D morphology of the native and ligand-bound conformation of the HIV-1 and SIV envelope (Env) surface (gp120) and transmembrane (gp41) glycoproteins, 3D structure and assembly of insect flight muscle, in characterizing the structure of cell adhesion complexes, and in characterizing the interaction of cell growth factors with heparan. In addition to these major projects, the centrifuge will potentially benefit the research of other faculty in the Institute of Molecular Biophysics and other departments participating in biomolecular research at Florida State University. The new instrumentation will enhance the research capability and productivity of our faculty and provide training opportunities for graduate students and postdoctoral associates in the Departments of Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Molecular Biophysics. Relevance: Analytical ultracentrifugation is a method used to characterize the size and shape of biological molecules in solution. This instrument will be used by the investigators to define the stoichiometry and energetics of assembly for biologically important macromolecular complexes involved in muscle contraction, RNA post-translational modification, transcriptional regulation, and membrane protein ion channels.