Basic biochemical equipment will be provided toward the development of an integrated laboratory for high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, computational biochemistry, computer graphics, and molecular modeling of biological macromolecules. The equipment will be used in the Center for Biomolecular Structure and Design at Purdue University. State-of-the-art techniques in structural biology will be applied in a regional and university facility. Core research will involve the development of new NMR probes and new methods for understanding the nature of enzymatic action. Model systems involving transition state analogues of enzyme complexes will also be analyzed. One and two dimensional homonuclear and heteronuclear NMR data will be used with computer modeling to define three dimensional architecture of biological macromolecules in solution. These studies should lead to the design of new compounds binding to proteins. A wide variety of other biological studies will also be supported. Computational calculations of the motions or dynamics of proteins will supplement the experimental measurements to provide a better understanding of protein function.
