wTSA-CRAFT: an open-access web server for rapid analysis of thermal shift assay experiments

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Structural Biology
• Bioinformatics

Background:

• The TSA-CRAFT tool offers high-throughput analysis for thermal shift assays.
• However, its command-line interface requires technical expertise and installation, limiting accessibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a user-friendly, web-based interface for the TSA-CRAFT tool.
• To enable cross-platform accessibility and simplify thermal shift assay data analysis.

Main Methods:

• Development of a web server embedded version of the TSA-CRAFT tool.
• Implementation of a graphical user interface (GUI) for input formatting, submission, and results visualization.
• Case study involving buffer condition optimization for the APH(3')-IIb bacterial protein using 96-well thermal shift analysis.

Main Results:

• The wTSA-CRAFT web server provides an intuitive GUI for thermal shift assay analysis.
• The tool facilitates easy formatting, submission of input files, and visualization of thermal denaturation profiles.
• Successful application demonstrated through buffer optimization for a bacterial protein.

Conclusions:

• The web-based TSA-CRAFT tool significantly lowers the barrier to entry for thermal shift assay analysis.
• It enhances data processing speed and accessibility for researchers across various platforms.
• This facilitates broader application in protein stability studies and drug discovery.