Macromolecular Crystallographic HighFlux Home Lab X-ray Diffraction System

描述（由申请人提供）：大分子晶体学在生物医学研究中起着核心作用。在马萨诸塞州大学医学院，晶体学分析支持了10多名研究人员的研究。该仪器用于由13个NIH赠款支持的研究，并培训了超过25名研究生。我们现在的仪器已经不能再依赖了。即使在正常工作时，目前的仪器也无法为许多研究人员所需的尖端研究项目服务。共享仪器赠款将使我们能够购买一个新的衍射系统和许多程序将不再受到过时的机器的限制。具体来说，我们正在申请资金用于理学HighFlux HomeLab X射线衍射系统，配备R-AXIS IV++成像板探测器。对于我们的许多项目，这个新系统将允许数据采集，足以回答大分子结构和药物设计中的基本问题。对于其他研究项目，新系统将允许本地筛选晶体，使同步加速器旅行更有效。因此，收购这种最先进的晶体学系统将推动我们的研究计划远远超出我们目前所能实现的。 公共卫生相关性：现代医学需要了解生物分子的详细结构。在这份提案中，我们要求为X射线衍射系统提供资金，这将使我们能够以原子细节确定这些关键的生物结构。这些细节将用于药物设计和理解许多人类疾病的分子机制。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Macromolecular crystallography plays a central role in biomedical research. At the University of Massachusetts Medical School, crystallographic analysis supports the research of more than 10 investigators. This instrumentation is used in the research that is supported by 13 NIH grants and trains more than 25 graduate students. Our current instrumentation can no longer be depended upon. Even when properly functioning the current instrumentation is incapable of serving the cutting-edge research programs many of the investigators require. A Shared Instrumentation Grant will allow us to purchase a new diffraction system and numerous programs will no longer be limited by an outdated machine. Specifically, we are requesting funds for a Rigaku HighFlux HomeLab x-ray diffraction system with an R-AXIS IV++ image plate detector. For many of our projects this new system will permit data acquisition that is sufficient to answer essential questions in macromolecular structure and drug design. For other research programs, the new system will allow local screening of crystals making synchrotron trips much more efficient. Thus the acquisition of this state-of-the-art crystallographic system will propel our research programs far beyond what we can currently achieve. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Modern medicine requires an understanding of the detailed structures of biological molecules. In this proposal we request funds for an x-ray diffraction system, which will allow us to determine such key biological structures in atomic detail. These details will be used in drug design and in understanding the molecular mechanisms of many human diseases.