Acquisition of a 600 MHz NMR for a Campus-Wide Facility

University Of California-Riverside, Riverside CA

Investigators

Abstract

With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) Program, the Department of Chemistry at the University of California in Riverside will acquire a high field (600 MHz) NMR Spectrometer. This equipment will enable researchers to carry out studies on a) the effects of disulfide bonds on peptide hormones; b) the dynamics of cis/trans isomerization of peptide bonds; c) interactions of peptides with heparin; d) allosteric transitions of insulin; and e) the structure of DNA pentaplexes. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is the most powerful tool available to chemists for the elucidation of the structure of molecules. It is used to identify unknown substances, to characterize specific arrangements of atoms within molecules, and to study the dynamics of interactions between molecules in solution. Access to state-of-the-art NMR spectrometers is essential to chemists who are carrying out frontier research. The results from these NMR studies will have an impact in biochemistry.