News

27 Aug 2020

Summer newsletter 2020. Special Issue: structural biology in the fight against COVID-19

The coronavirus pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on the world. At the frontline of COVID-19 research efforts, structural biologists have been working to determine the structure and mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 and identify targets for therapeutics and vaccines.

Despite immense pressure and challenging working conditions, the scientific community has shown resilience and determination, collaborating with colleagues across the world to deliver vital research quickly and safely. At Instruct Centres, scientists have been working within local guidelines to mobilise resources and support vital COVID research.

Instruct-ERIC continues to work closely with life science communities in Europe and beyond, supporting researchers in their efforts to study the virus.

20 Aug 2020

Successful installation of 1.2 GHz NMR system at ETH Zürich and delivery of the third 1.2 GHz NMR to MPI Göttingen

On July, 22, 2020 the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences of the ETH Zürich, Switzerland announced the successful installation and acceptance of the Avance™ NEO 1.2 GHz NMR system. Following the acceptance of the world's first 1.2 GHz NMR at the CERM of the University of Florence earlier this year, this marks the second installation of a 1.2 GHz NMR in the world.

18 Aug 2020

Open Call: Funding available for Slovenian researchers for remote access to Instruct-ERIC Structural Biology Services

Since Slovenia is currently exploring Instruct-ERIC membership, an open call has been launched on Monday, August 17, 2020 to offer Slovenian researchers trial use of the structural biology services available through Instruct.

18 Aug 2020

Instruct-ERIC Pilot R&D Project 2020

Instruct allocates funds to support small pilot research and development projects in any area of structural biology up to a maximum of €15,000 per project. All proposals must include the use of technologies available at Instruct Centres or develop technologies that will benefit the aims of Instruct Deadline for Submission: August 31, 2020, 17:00 CEST

14 Aug 2020

Instruct-ERIC webinar series: From structure to function

Instruct-ERIC is launching a new webinar series called "From structure to function". The first webinar, hosted by Instruct Centre Israel at the Weizmann Institute of Science, will be held on 18 August 2020 from 11:00 – 12:30 CEST.

6 Aug 2020

Postdoc positions at CEITEC – Cryo-ET and Cryo-EM of Viral Transcription-Translation Coupling

Two postdoc positions are available in newly established Gabriel Demo lab (CEITEC, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic) to participate in research focused on structural mechanisms of transcription-translation coupling in bacteria and potentially in virus-infected mammalian cells.

Highlights of Coronavirus Structural Studies

5 May 2020

Structure, Function, and Antigenicity of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Glycoprotein

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has resulted in >90,000 infections and >3,000 deaths. Coronavirus spike (S) glycoproteins promote entry into cells and are the main target of antibodies. We show that SARS-CoV-2 S uses ACE2 to enter cells and that the receptor-binding domains of SARS-CoV-2 S and SARS-CoV S bind with similar affinities to human ACE2, correlating with the efficient spread of SARS-CoV-2 among humans. We found that the SARS-CoV-2 S glycoprotein harbors a furin cleavage site at the boundary between the S₁/S₂ subunits, which is processed during biogenesis and sets this virus apart from SARS-CoV and SARS-related CoVs. In the study published in Cell, David Veesler with coworkers determined cryo-EM structures of the SARS-CoV-2 S ectodomain trimer, providing a blueprint for the design of vaccines and inhibitors of viral entry. Finally, they demonstrate that SARS-CoV S murine polyclonal antibodies potently inhibited SARS-CoV-2 S mediated entry into cells, indicating that cross-neutralizing antibodies targeting conserved S epitopes can be elicited upon vaccination.

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Reader's Corner Archive

TIP

30 Jul 2019

Principles for Integrative Structural Biology Studies

Guru of integrative structural biology computation Andrej Sali and Michale P. Rout summarize in the recent Cell Primer Principles for Integrative Structural Biology Studies.

Visualization of biological macromolecules at near-atomic resolution: cryo-electron microscopy comes of age

The topical review by Alok K. Mitra recapitulates developments and transformational advances of cryo-EM technology.

16 Jul 2019

The expanding toolkit for structural biology: synchrotrons, X-ray lasers and cryo-EM

Samar Hasnain et. al. describe the steadily-expanding methodologies for atomic resolution studies in The expanding toolkit for structural biology: synchrotrons, X-ray lasers and cryo-EM. Of note is the following statistics: Despite the wealth of structures in the Protein Data Bank, a closer examination reveals that 89% of the structures, i.e. 126 994, are of proteins or complexes with a molecular weight of less than 160 kDa. Furthermore, only 4% of the deposited structures have a molecular weight in excess of 300 kDa.