IDBR: TYPE A Precise Manipulation and Patterning of Protein Nanocrystals Using Surface Acoustic Wave Technology

纽约州立大学石溪分校获得了一项奖励，以开发一种利用表面声波技术精确操纵和绘制蛋白质纳米晶体图案的设备。结构生物学几乎影响着生物学和生物医学的所有领域。通过提高数据收集的效率，该设备将减少解决晶体结构所需的时间，节省宝贵的资源，并使收集样品上的数据成为可能，否则将不切实际或不可能。其结果将对利用结构数据的每个生物学领域产生重大的积极影响，并有可能取得有利于人类健康的重大进展。这种跨学科的工作也是一个理想的机会，为各种各样的学员提供教育和经验。参与这个项目的研究生、本科生和高中生将学习工程学的各个方面及其在生物学中的应用。这项工作的其他教育组成部分包括视频演示和关于这项技术的使用和应用的教程，创建教学模块向本科生介绍声流体学，并通过积极参与STEM探索和多样性增强计划来促进代表性不足的群体的参与。该装置的目的是为x射线晶体学操作和图案蛋白质晶体。x射线晶体学是一种非常强大和成熟的技术，用于从晶体样品的x射线衍射中确定生物分子的原子分辨率结构。这种技术解决的大多数结构都是利用同步加速器源产生的x射线，或者最近使用的自由电子激光器（FELs）。这些源的技术进步使得随着光束尺寸的不断减小而增加通量成为可能。这主要是由于正在分析的生物分子标本的复杂性和尺寸的增加。许多最令人兴奋的目标，包括蛋白质复合物、膜蛋白和病毒，都极难分离、纯化和结晶。在结晶试验期间，这些类型的样品以及许多其他样品可能只产生几微米或更小尺寸的晶体。虽然现代x射线源使微晶体的数据收集成为可能，但传统的晶体操作手段不足以处理如此小比例的晶体。操纵和设计蛋白质纳米晶体的装置将利用生物相容性表面声波技术来移动几乎任何大小的脆弱晶体。该装置坚固耐用，制造成本低廉，易于由非专家实施，将显着提高吞吐量并大大减少样品消耗。该装置的实现将使以前难以处理的样品的使用成为可能，并扩大了微聚焦和连续晶体学的可及性。

An award is made to SUNY at Stony Brook to develop a device for the precise manipulation and patterning of protein nanocrystals using surface acoustic wave technology. Structural biology impacts virtually all fields of biology and biomedicine. By increasing the efficiency of data collection, this device will decrease the time required to solve crystal structures, conserving precious resources and making it possible to collect data on samples that would be otherwise impractical or impossible. The result will be a major positive impact on every field of biology that makes use of structural data, and the potential for significant advances benefiting human health. This cross-disciplinary work is also an ideal opportunity to provide education and experience to a variety of trainees. Graduate students, undergraduates and high school students involved with this project will learn aspects of engineering and its application to biology. Additional educational components of this work include video demonstrations and tutorials on the use and applications of this technology, the creation of teaching modules to introduce undergraduates to acoustofluidics and the promotion of the participation of under-represented groups by active participation in STEM explorations and diversity-enhancing programs.The purpose of this device is to manipulate and pattern protein crystals for X-ray crystallography. X-ray crystallography is an extremely powerful and well established technique used to determine the atomic resolution structure of biomolecules from the diffraction of X-rays by crystalline samples. The majority of structures solved by this technique make use of X-rays generated at synchrotron sources or, more recently, by free electron lasers (FELs). Advances in technology at these sources have made possible increasing flux with ever decreasing beam sizes. This is largely driven by the increasing complexity and size of the biomolecular specimens that are being analyzed. Many of the most exciting targets, including protein complexes, membrane proteins and viruses, are extremely difficult to isolate, purify and crystallize. These types of samples, as well as many others, may only yield crystals of a few micrometers or less in size during crystallization trials. While modern X-ray sources make data collection on microcrystals feasible, conventional means of crystal manipulation are inadequate to handle crystals of such small proportions. The device to manipulate and pattern protein nanocrystals will make use of biocompatible surface acoustic wave technology to move fragile crystals of virtually any size. This device, which will be robust, inexpensive to fabricate and easy to implement by non-experts, will significantly improve throughput and vastly decrease sample consumption. The implementation of this device will enable the use of previously intractable samples and broaden the accessibility of micro-focus and serial crystallography.