Neutron scattering techniques and applications in structural biology

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Abstract

Neutron scattering is exquisitely sensitive to the position, concentration, and dynamics of hydrogen atoms in materials and is a powerful tool for the characterization of structurefunction and interfacial relationships in biological systems. Modern neutron scattering facilities offer access to a sophisticated, nondestructive suite of instruments for biophysical characterization that provides spatial and dynamic information spanning from Ångstroms to microns and from picoseconds to microseconds, respectively. Applications in structural biology range from the atomic-resolution analysis of individual hydrogen atoms in enzymes through to meso- and macro-scale analysis of complex biological structures, membranes, and assemblies. The large difference in neutron scattering length between hydrogen and deuterium allows contrast variation experiments to be performed and enables H/D isotopic labeling to be used for selective and systematic analysis of the local structure, dynamics, and interactions of multi-component systems. This overview describes the available techniques and summarizes their practical application to the study of biomolecular systems.

Original languageEnglish
Article number17.16
JournalCurrent Protocols in Protein Science
Issue numberSUPPL.72
DOIs
StatePublished - 2013

Funding

FundersFunder number
U.S. Department of EnergyDE-AC05-00OR22725

    Keywords

    • Bio-macromolecule structure
    • Deuteration
    • Diffraction
    • Membranes
    • Neutron scattering
    • Protein dynamics
    • Quasi-elastic
    • Reflectometry
    • SANS

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