The goal of the new Structural Biology Core is to provide Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC) members with access to and training in the state-of-the-art methodologies of structural biology and molecular modeling. Services include high-throughput automated protein and nucleic acid crystallization, x-ray diffraction data collection, crystal structural determination and analysis, solution structure determination by multidimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods, and sequence-informed molecular modeling and molecular dynamics. The Core is led by structural biologist Matthew R. Redinbo, Ph.D., (Molecular Therapeutics) and UNC LCCC member, with individual facilities managed by Ph.D.-level scientists with over 40 collective years of research experience. This new Core adds value to the Center by making available to non-structural biologists the complex methodologies of crystallography, NMR and molecular modeling, with the goal of adding the tools of structural biology to the repertoire used by LCCC researchers across disciplines. Highlights of recent research supported by the Core include: elucidation of the detailed molecular mechanism of Rho GTPase activation by Dbl-family GEFs, and unraveling the structural basis of drug interactions caused by activation of PXR, the primary xenobiotic sensor in humans. Future plans for the Core include additional structural biology capabilities, and increased use by a campus-wide initiative in drug discovery designed to identify drug targets and generate initial clinical candidates.
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