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Updated: Jun 6, 2026

Monitoring Protein-Ligand Interactions in Human Cells by Real-Time Quantitative In-Cell NMR using a High Cell Density Bioreactor
Published on: March 9, 2021
In-cell protein NMR and protein leakage
Christopher O Barnes1, Gary J Pielak
1Department of Chemistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA.
Abstract:
In-cell nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy is a tool for studying proteins under physiologically relevant conditions. In some instances, however, protein signals from leaked protein are observed in the liquid surrounding the cells. Here, we examine the expression of four proteins in Escherichia coli. We describe the controls that should be used for in-cell NMR experiments and show that leakage is likely when the protein being studied exceeds ∼20% of the total cellular protein.
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