Ion mobility - mass spectrometer

• Subject Area: Basic Research in Biology and Medicine
• Term: Funded in 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 461372424

The requested mass spectrometer is a central methodological component within the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry and an indispensable prerequisite for the research approaches within the ongoing LOEWE project TRABITA. The proposed mass spectrometer will enable the scientists involved to use so-far inaccessible approaches to characterise conformational states in disease-relevant proteins, especially through (i) hydrogen-deuterium exchange experiments, (ii) native mass spectrometry, and (iii) ion mobility spectrometry. This allows the composition, stability, and contact areas of protein-protein and protein-ligand complexes to be investigated in a unique way. A specific goal is a better understanding of transient binding pockets in proteins, which are key for the discovery of new classes of drugs.The conformation-sensitive mass spectrometry approach is intended to be established in the long term as an orthogonal technique to existing structural biological methods (crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy) in Darmstadt. A special focus will be on proteins that are insufficiently addressable with the previous methods.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Ionenmobilitäts-Massenspektrometer
• Instrumentation Group: 1700 Massenspektrometer
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Darmstadt
• Leader: Professor Dr. Frederik Lermyte