Carbon-detected NMR experiments to investigate structure and dynamics of biological macromolecules

We have started to develop new NMR pulse sequences that detect carbon magnetization during the acquisition period. These experiments have become possible with the recent introduction of cryogenic probe heads. We show that a careful design of these carbon-detected experiments can at least partially compensate for the inherent lower sensitivity of carbon detection compared to proton detection. We discuss potential applications of carbon detection and demonstrate a deconvolution technique that removes the effects of carbon-carbon couplings from the spectra.