PITTSBURGH, April 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- At the 57th
Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference
(www.enc-conference.org), Bruker (NASDAQ: BRKR) announced new
GHz-class NMR magnet and probe technologies to enable expanding
frontiers in structural biology, membrane protein and intrinsically
disordered protein (IDP) research.
World's first shielded 1 GHz NMR at University of
Bayreuth: Bruker has successfully installed the world's first,
next-generation 1GHz NMR system equipped with an
actively-shielded Aeon™ 1 GHz magnet at the
University of Bayreuth, Germany.
Active shielding reduces the space requirements for the
two-story magnet by more than an order of magnitude, and makes
siting of next-generation Aeon 1 GHz magnets
straightforward. The new Aeon 1 GHz magnets
have been developed using advanced superconductors provided by
Bruker's Energy & Supercon Technologies (BEST) division.
The Aeon 1 GHz also features novel active
refrigeration technology, eliminating the need for liquid nitrogen,
and reducing liquid helium boil-off essentially to zero under
normal operation. Bi-annual pulse-tube cooler maintenance is
done at field for minimal disruption and downtime.
![Installation of the Bruker Aeon 1 GHz magnet at the Research Center for Bio-Macromolecules at the University of Bayreuth, Germany Installation of the Bruker Aeon 1 GHz magnet at the Research Center for Bio-Macromolecules at the University of Bayreuth, Germany](https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnvar/20160407/352843)
Professor Paul Rösch is the
Director of the Research Center for Bio-Macromolecules at the
University of Bayreuth, Germany,
where the installation of the world's first Aeon 1
GHz system for high-resolution NMR was recently
completed. Dr. Rösch stated: "The Aeon 1 GHz is
a breakthrough for our studies of the interaction of transcription
factors with bacterial RNA-polymerase. With a molecular mass
exceeding 450 kDa, this is one of the largest heteromeric protein
systems ever successfully studied by NMR. We were pleased
with the smooth installation and the protein spectra look
wonderful. The instrument will also advance our studies of
G-protein coupled receptors and their interaction with membranes, a
field of utmost importance to pharmaceutical industry."
![Professor Paul Rosch,Director of the Research Center for Bio-Macromolecules at the University of Bayreuth, Germany Professor Paul Rosch,Director of the Research Center for Bio-Macromolecules at the University of Bayreuth, Germany](https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnvar/20160407/352845)
The Aeon 1 GHz represents a milestone in the
development of tools for the advancement of structural biology and
IDP research. Due to its increased spectral dispersion and
sensitivity, the system increases the size of bio-macromolecules
that can be studied. The GHz systems are also the optimal
platform for new CryoProbe technology and new NMR
methods and pulse sequences for the study of intrinsically
disordered proteins. Additional Aeon 1 GHz
systems are on order from the University of
Toronto and the Weizmann Institute of Science.
Novel Single-Story Aeon™ 950 MHz at University
of Leeds: the world's first
compact, single-story 950 MHz NMR magnet for high-resolution
protein NMR is being introduced at ENC 2016. It also
integrates advanced refrigeration technology, and obviates the need
for any cryogen refills. This new single-story 950 MHz magnet has
been successfully installed at the University of Leeds, UK. Previous 950 MHz magnets
required specialized two-story NMR laboratories.
For the Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology at
University of Leeds, the
single-story Aeon 950 MHz magnet could be installed
without building adaptations. It incorporates a novel
CryoProbe™ now for both 13C and 15N direct detection.
This compact ultra-high field magnet and probe technology enables
the determination of structures, dynamics and interactions of
globular proteins, as well as the study of advanced functional and
disease mechanisms of intrinsically disordered proteins.
Dr. Alex Breeze, Professor of
Biomolecular NMR at the University of Leeds, stated: "We are tremendously excited by
our new Aeon 950 MHz instrument, which will be
complemented with cutting-edge cryo-electron microscopy and other
structural biology techniques. In particular, the combination
of 950 MHz field strength and the novel direct-detection
capabilities of the latest CryoProbes allow us to access critical
structural and dynamic information on important biological systems
and medically relevant targets with optimum sensitivity and
resolution. Indeed, we have already obtained impressive
1H-15N TROSY data on unlabeled proteins at natural isotopic
abundance expressed in mammalian cells on our new 950 MHz
system."
New 15N-optimized CryoProbe™: The recently
introduced next-generation 15N optimized CryoProbes
with cold 15N preamplifiers will now be offered up to 1 GHz.
In conjunction with the latest GHz-magnets and novel 15N
direct-detect NMR methods, this CryoProbe now makes direct
15N detection sensitive and advantageous in very large globular
proteins and in IDPs, due to the longer relaxation times, high
resolution and low chemical shift anisotropy of 15N spectra.
Furthermore, 15N detection is beneficial in cases where
carbon-detected methods suffer from multiple couplings to
neighboring carbons, or in the study of proline-rich protein
domains. Another attractive area of 15N detection are
paramagnetic metallo-proteins, where 1H or even 13C magnetization
is broadened beyond detection limits. These 15N-detected
experiments are critically dependent on the high sensitivity
delivered by new 5mm CryoProbes with cryogenic 15N
preamplifiers. In conjunction with updated fast acquisition
methods, experiment times are no longer a detriment to arrive at
this information.
Professor Gerhard Wagner of
Harvard Medical School, a pioneer of
15N direct detection, stated: "Direct 15N and 13C detection
methods have recently been evolved and found to be almost as
sensitive as 1H detection techniques, benefitting from the slow
transverse relaxation. 15N-detected TROSYs in particular do
not require protein perdeuteration, which avoids the confounding
problem of incomplete amide back exchange in large proteins that
cannot be refolded and open avenues for expressing
[13C,15N]-labeled proteins in insect cells or mammalian
systems. The low-gamma NMR detection methods also provide new
opportunities for studies of proline-rich polypeptides often found
in regulatory regions, such as phosphorylation domains.
However, spectra of such domains are typically poorly dispersed and
highest field strengths will be needed to reveal mechanisms of
phosphorylation-dependent switch mechanisms. Availability of
GHz-class NMR instruments will be important for revealing
mechanisms of phosphorylation-dependent signaling switches."
Frank H. Laukien, Ph.D.,
President and CEO of Bruker
Corporation, commented: "Now successfully installed at customer
sites, the new GHz NMR technology is opening new frontiers for the
study of IDPs in biology and disease pathogenesis. The GHz
NMR tools will accelerate our understanding of many fundamental
biological processes and help to illuminate the 'Dark Proteome'.
The Aeon 1 GHz system, with its latest
Cryoprobe technology and NMR methods, is expected to
provide enormous benefits for clinical and pharmaceutical research
on the role of globular, membrane and intrinsically disordered
proteins in cancer, diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases."
About Bruker Corporation
For more than 50 years, Bruker has enabled scientists to make
breakthrough discoveries and develop new applications that improve
the quality of human life. Bruker's high-performance
scientific research instruments and high-value analytical solutions
enable scientists to explore life and materials at molecular,
cellular and microscopic levels.
In close cooperation with our customers, Bruker is enabling
innovation, productivity and customer success in life science
molecular research, in applied and pharma applications, in
microscopy, nano-analysis and industrial applications, as well as
in cell biology, preclinical imaging, clinical research,
microbiology and molecular diagnostics. For more information,
please visit www.bruker.com.
For more information on Bruker at ENC 2016, please visit:
www.bruker.com/enc
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