Structural Analysis of Photosynthetic Protein Complex
To help our clients better understand the structural and molecular mechanisms of photosynthesis, CD BioSciences has developed a professional and advanced biophysical analysis platform to provide technical support and scientific services. We offer a variety of techniques including X-ray crystallography, electron crystallography, and multiple mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques to analyze photosynthetic protein complex.
Introduction
Photosynthesis is an important physiological process in plants, which involves the conversion of light energy into chemical energy. It is of great significance to realize the energy conversion in nature and maintain the carbon-oxygen balance of the atmosphere. The reaction center and light capture complex are the two most critical protein machineries in this process. They are commonly giant protein complexes with different numbers of co-factors. Exploring the structure, function, and molecular mechanism of these protein complexes is essential for a better understanding of photosynthesis. Currently, the development of multiple biophysical analytical methods largely benefits the study of photosynthetic proteins.
Fig.1 Four major membrane protein complexes in photosynthesis: photosystem I, cytochrome b6f, photosystem II, and ATP synthase. (Hou, 2012)
Our Services
- Crystallization of membrane proteins.
Crystallization is a key step in determining the structure of the complexes by X-ray crystallography. We help our customers find the initial crystallization conditions for membrane proteins and provide further optimization services to obtain high-quality crystals suitable for structure determination. Our optimization strategies include detergent exchange, additive screening, and protein modification, as well as adjustment of routine factors such as temperature, pH, and precipitant.
- X-ray structure analysis of photosynthetic protein complexes.
We are committed to developing methods for crystallization and X-ray structural analysis of large photosynthetic protein complexes to help our customers better study the molecular mechanisms of photosynthesis.
- Structure analysis of the crystallized molecules via electron crystallography.
We use electron microscopy-based methods to analyze crystals to help our customers determine the structure of proteins or protein complexes and study conformational changes associated with the different functional states of membrane proteins.
- Mass spectrometry-based structural analysis of photosynthetic protein assemblies.
We use mass spectrometry (MS)-based footprinting, native MS and membrane protein MS detection technologies to help customers study photosynthetic proteins including reaction center proteins, light trapping proteins and proteins involved in photoprotection processes.
Advantages of Our Services
- Expertise — A team of biophysical scientists with extensive experience.
- Comprehensive — A wide selection of structural analysis techniques.
- Flexibility — Testing services meet customers’ needs.
- Fast turnaround time — Test data and feedback provided to clients in a short period of time.
CD BioSciences offers a full range of services for structural analysis of photosynthetic protein complexes, including pre-consultation, testing and analysis, and delivery of results. If you are interested in our services, please contact us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
References
- Hou, H. J. M. Manganese in natural and artificial photosynthesis. Manganese: chemical properties, medicinal uses and environmental effects. Nova, Hauppauge. 2012.
- Fromme, P.; Allen, J. P. X-ray crystallography of photosynthetic proteins. Biophysical techniques in photosynthesis. 2008, 97-124.
For research use only, not
intended for any clinical use.
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