Study of the hydrophobic cavity of beta-cryptogein through laser-polarized xenon NMR spectroscopy

Sensitivity enhancement in solution NMR: emerging ideas and new frontiers

Modern NMR spectroscopy has reached an unprecedented level of sophistication in the determination of biomolecular structure and dynamics at atomic resolution in liquids. However, the sensitivity of this technique is still too low to solve a variety of cutting-edge biological problems in solution, especially those that involve viscous samples, very large biomolecules or aggregation-prone systems that need to be kept at low concentration. Despite the challenges, a variety of efforts have been carried out over the years to increase sensitivity of NMR spectroscopy in liquids. This review discusses basic concepts, recent developments and future opportunities in this exciting area of research.

Highlighting cavities in proteins by NMR using sulfur hexafluoride as a spy molecule

Cavities in proteins can be studied experimentally by using some detectable atoms, such as xenon, or molecules which act as reporter, such as a spy. The interest of sulfur hexafluoride (SF(6)) for probing hydrophobic cavities by solution-state NMR is investigated. The wheat nonspecific lipid transfer protein (LTP) was selected as a model system for this purpose. The binding of SF(6) is straightforwardly detected by the (19)F chemical shift, line width, or longitudinal relaxation time measurements, which can be carried out at low SF(6) concentration without interference from resonances of the protein. Most interestingly, the binding of SF(6) gives rise to selective intermolecular (1)H{(19)F} heteronuclear Overhauser effects (HOEs). Molecular dynamics simulation and NMR spectrum modeling show that the experimental HOESY spectra are consistent with (1)H{(19)F} HOEs arising from SF(6) in the cavity of LTP. SF(6) is found to be an advantageous alternative to hyperpolarized (129)Xe and small organic compounds for probing cavities in proteins by solution-state NMR.