Number of participants limited to 11 in the 3rd semester quarter of the spring semester
Number of participants limited to 12 in the 4th semester quarter of the spring semester
The block course will only take place with a minimum of 4 participants.
The enrolment is done by the D-BIOL study administration.
Courses
Number
Title
Hours
Lecturers
551-1556-00 G
Macromolecular Structure Determination Using Modern Methods
Permission from lecturers required for all students.
Block course will be held two times, once in the 3rd- and once in the 4th semester quarter of the spring semester The practical part of the course for 4 students in each quarter will be done at the Laboratory of Biolmolecular Research (BMR), Paul Scherrer Institut (http://www.psi.ch/lbr). For location please see the link http://www.psi.ch/how-to-find-us
This course will expose the students to two prominent techniques for high-resolution structural characterization of biological macromolecules. The students will have the opportunity to get hands-on experience in either cryo-electron microscopy (ETH) or X-ray crystallography (PSI).
Learning objective
The goal of this course is to introduce the students to the principles of high-resolution structure determination. Students will conduct hands-on experiments and use computational techniques for data processing.
Content
At the ETH the students will prepare and vitrify a protein and then image it on a cryo-TEM. Next, the students will process the data and build an atomic model into the EM map.
At the PSI the students will purify and crystallize a membrane protein, collect X-ray diffraction data using synchrotron X-ray source or with cryo-EM, analyze and build an atomic model into a density map. They will refine this model and interpret and illustrate the determined structure. The course work is trying to present insights in the use of structural information. The course also includes a demonstration of the Synchrotron capabilities at the Paul Scherrer Institute (SLS).
Prerequisites / Notice
The students will be split into two groups for the practical part of the work: One group will work at ETH Hönggerberg, the other at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) at Villigen. All students will spend one full day at the PSI for a tour of the facilities, including a visit of the synchrotron beam lines of the Swiss Light Source SLS.
The students joining the ETH Hönggerberg group will spend the majority of the time on data processing and are therefore expected to have some basic knowledge of bash terminal commands. Basic physics, optics and linear algebra knowledge is also helpful. By the end of the course, the students will be expected to understand concepts such as the difference between Fourier and real space, image formation, contrast transfer, fast Fourier transfer and Fourier shell correlation.
Performance assessment
Performance assessment information (valid until the course unit is held again)
Performance assessment as a semester course