Solid-state NMR: An emerging technique in structural biology of self-assemblies

Area of Science:

• Structural Biology
• Biophysics
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Protein self-assemblies are crucial in cellular processes, including infections and neurodegenerative diseases.
• Determining the 3D structures of these assemblies is difficult due to their insolubility, non-crystalline nature, and large size.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present recent advancements in magic-angle spinning ssNMR for studying protein assemblies.
• To highlight the integration of ssNMR with complementary structural biology techniques.

Main Methods:

• Magic-angle spinning solid-state NMR (ssNMR) spectroscopy.
• Hybrid approaches combining ssNMR with cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), mass-per-length measurements, small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and X-ray diffraction.

Main Results:

• ssNMR offers atomic-level structural data on intact macromolecular assemblies.
• Combined techniques have yielded precious atomic details and high-resolution structures.
• Successful applications include amyloid fibrils, bacterial filaments, phages, and virus capsids.

Conclusions:

• ssNMR is a powerful emerging method for structural studies of protein assemblies.
• Hybrid approaches enhance structural determination capabilities for complex biological systems.
• This research provides critical structural insights into various protein self-assemblies.