Development of NMR methods to map peptide:Nanoparticle interactions

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Bruker is a leading manufacturer of high-field Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectrometers and is keenly interested in expanding the application of high-resolution NMR methods to the investigation of peptide-material interactions mediating protein adsorption at surfaces. Biomolecular adsorption is recognized as an emerging field of future high-field NMR applications due to the relevance of the interactions between peptides and material surfaces for a wide range of industrial applications, ranging from biomaterials to biomedical devices and sensors. Yet, our current knowledge of protein - material interactions is at best scant. Which protein residues interact with material surfaces? What conformational and dynamical changes occur in proteins upon adsorption into materials? Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is an ideal technique to address these central questions thanks to recent developments in NMR hardware, including high-field magnets and improved sensitivity. However, further development of NMR methods to map protein - material interactions at atomic resolution is necessary in order to define general molecular principles of protein adsorption. We therefore propose to develop high-resolution NMR methods to map the interactions of peptides with materials. Bruker Canada will directly benefits from the development of these new NMR methods, because they will open a new market for high-field NMR spectrometers, both in the industrial and academic sectors. For instance, biomedical companies that develop, produce and market biopharmaceuticals will take advantage of the developed NMR technologies for either improving their products and/or for quality control purposes. Bruker Canada will also benefit from direct access to sample preparation, HQP and high-field NMR magnets available at McMaster for both development and "demo" purposes for potential Bruker customers. The NMR experiments that we propose to develop are also expected to attract the interest of other academic laboratories working on material science. The proposed work will therefore expand the customer base of Bruker Canada, in both the private and public sectors.