This proposal requests funding to purchase a Thermo Scientific Q Exactive mass spectrometer for characterization of a very large number of new and novel molecules synthesized at the University of Wisconsin - Madison. The spectrometer will be placed in the Chemistry Department's shared instrumentation center. The projects to be supported by this instrument are addressing fundamental biological questions. The capabilities provided by the requested instrumentation are crucial to the success of the proposed research. For example, the Gellman group is designing peptide-like oligomers to interrupt disease state protein/protein interactions. The Yoon group is using light photocatalysis to develop new methods for the synthesis of natural products, while the Stahl group is developing metal catalysts for oxidative functionalization of alkenes and aerobic dehydrogenation methods for the synthesis aromatic carbocycles and heterocycles that will lead to the synthesis of pharmaceuticals. The Kiessling group's work is centered on elucidating how carbohydrates are assembled, how they are recognized, and how they function in cells. The ability of bacteria to communicate with each other using a language of small molecules has the Blackwell group examining quorum sensing, the route known to regulate 50% of all crop disease and 80% of human infections. And the Weibel group is tracking the dynamics of proteins in cells to understand cell shape, while the Raines group currently is using boronate-labeled proteins to deliver drugs to the inside of cells. The ultimate goal of all these synthesis projects is to find ways to improve human health.
On-site access to a Q Exactive Orbitrap mass spectrometer will enable scientists at the University of Wisconsin - Madison to characterize many new and novel compounds that are being developed to improve human health. The requested instrument will have state-of-the-art resolving powers, accuracy, and data collection for MS and MSMS experiments. The research to be supported by this instrument includes finding ways to disrupt disease state protein/protein interactions, protein/carbohydrate interactions, and bacterial quorum sensing and also finding new methods for synthesizing natural products and pharmaceuticals.
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