Research project Revealing atomic structures, charge states and molecular interactions in macromolecules
Revealing atomic structures, charge states and molecular interactions in macromolecules by microcrystal electron diffraction.
Knowing the 3D atomic structures, charge states and protein-ligand interactions is crucial for understanding the functions of macromolecules and chemical processes in biological systems, as well as for modern drug design. This project aims at developing new methods based on electron diffraction (ED) to push the limits of current structure determination methods.
Project description
We will develop:
- novel approaches for EM sample preparation
- new strategies and techniques for data collection on both microcrystals and single macromolecules
- and new approaches for phasing single particle ED data
By applying the new methods, we will obtain:
- accurate structure determination of macromolecules from nano/micron-sized crystals
- 3D structures of single macromolecules
- structure and charge states of metals and amino acids in proteins and catalytic intermediates
To accomplish this we will create a strong environment with excellence in electron crystallography, protein crystallography, and biochemistry for the project.
We will make ED as fast, feasible and accurate as X-ray crystallography. We will build an Electron Crystallography platform to spread the knowledge and techniques worldwide. We expect the project to open new opportunities and significantly strengthen the research in structural biology.
Project members
Project managers
Xiaodong Zou
Professor
