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Updated: Jan 19, 2026

Structure and Coordination Determination of Peptide-metal Complexes Using 1D and 2D 1H NMR
Published on: December 16, 2013
Metal-Chelated Polymer Nanodiscs for NMR Studies
Nathaniel Z Hardin1, Vojč Kocman1, Giacomo M Di Mauro1
1Biophysics Program and Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-1055, USA.
Novel paramagnetic nanodiscs accelerate NMR data acquisition by reducing relaxation times. These functionalized nanodiscs offer enhanced structural insights for both lipid bilayers and water-soluble biomolecules like DNA G-quadruplexes.
Area of Science:
- Biophysical Chemistry
- Polymer Science
- Structural Biology
Background:
- Paramagnetic relaxation enhancement (PRE) is crucial for accelerating Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) data acquisition by shortening spin-lattice relaxation times (T1).
- Developing novel paramagnetic labels is essential for advancing NMR studies on complex biomolecules.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize a modified poly(styrene-co-maleic acid) polymer capable of forming nanodiscs with metal-chelating properties.
- To evaluate the efficacy of Copper(II) (Cu2+)-chelated nanodiscs in reducing proton T1 values.
- To explore the application of these functionalized nanodiscs for enhancing NMR studies on both lipid bilayers and water-soluble biomolecules.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis and characterization of modified poly(styrene-co-maleic acid) nanodiscs.
- Chelation of Cu2+ ions into the nanodiscs.
- Measurement of proton spin-lattice relaxation times (T1) for nanodisc components and a DNA G-quadruplex.
- Assessment of T1 reduction in the presence of Cu2+-chelated nanodiscs.
Main Results:
- Successfully synthesized and characterized modified polymer nanodiscs with metal-chelating capabilities.
- Cu2+-chelated nanodiscs significantly reduced the proton T1 values of both the polymer and lipid-nanodisc components.
- A notable decrease in proton T1 values was observed for a water-soluble DNA G-quadruplex upon addition of the chelated nanodiscs.
Conclusions:
- Polymer nanodiscs functionalized with paramagnetic tags serve as effective agents for accelerating NMR data acquisition.
- These paramagnetic nanodiscs can be utilized to obtain structural information from lipid bilayer systems.
- The developed nanodiscs show promise for structural studies of water-soluble biomolecules, including DNA G-quadruplexes.
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