Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2026

Site Directed Spin Labeling and EPR Spectroscopic Studies of Pentameric Ligand-Gated Ion Channels
Published on: July 4, 2016
RNA dynamics: perspectives from spin labels
1Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
None:
Dynamics are important and indispensible physical attributes that play essential roles in RNA function. RNA dynamics are complex, spanning vast timescales, and encompassing a large number of physical modes. The technique of site-directed spin labeling (SDSL), which derives information on local structural and dynamic features of a macromolecule by monitoring a chemically stable nitroxide radical using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, has been applied to monitor intrinsic dynamics at defined structural states as well as to probe conformational transition dynamics of RNAs. The current state of SDSL studies of RNA dynamics is summarized here. Further development and application of SDSL promise to open up many more opportunities for probing RNA dynamics and connecting dynamics to structure and function.
More Related Videos
07:24Paramagnetic Relaxation Enhancement for Detecting and Characterizing Self-Associations of Intrinsically Disordered Proteins
Published on: September 23, 2021
09:25NMR 15N Relaxation Experiments for the Investigation of Picosecond to Nanoseconds Structural Dynamics of Proteins
Published on: November 1, 2024
Related Concept Videos
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Overview
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin
Atomic nuclei have a net nuclear spin, , which can have an integer or half-integer value. In atomic nuclei, the spins of protons are paired against each other but not with neutrons, and vice versa. Consequently, an even number of protons does not contribute to...
Spin–Spin Coupling: Two-Bond Coupling (Geminal Coupling)
The central atom need not be NMR-active because its electrons are affected by the electron polarization of the spin-active atoms. However, spin information is transmitted less effectively than in one-bond coupling, and 2J values are usually weaker than 1J values. The energy of...
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Population Distribution
¹H NMR: Interpreting Distorted and Overlapping Signals
As Δν decreases and the signals move closer, the doublets appear increasingly distorted. The intensities of the inner lines increase at the cost of those of the outer lines as the signals are slanted or...
NMR Spectroscopy: Spin–Spin Coupling