New application notes

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Q-Sense proprietary analysis technology QCM-D has a wide range of application fields. Below follows a summary of our latest application notes.

ANALYZING ENZYMATIC ACTIVITY ON FUNCTIONALIZED SURFACES
This application note demonstrates how Quartz Crystal Microbalance with Dissipation (QCM-D) can be used to study enzyme-protein interactions on functionalized biological surfaces in real time. Specifically we study how functionalized surfaces can be used to control antibody binding and orientation. Further, the specific enzymatic degradation of antibodies is investigated. Read more.

VISCOSITY MEASUREMENTS WITH QCM-D
This application note demonstrates how Q-Sense QCM-D instruments can be used to measure viscosity in microliter volumes. High concentration protein solutions are common in pharmaceutical applications. For example, solution formulation of monoclonal antibodies for therapeutic purposes often necessitates preparation of high concentration solutions of these proteins. Since high concentration solutions are expensive, sample volume is critical. Read more.

QCM-D STUDY OF MOLECULAR CONFORMATIONAL EFFECTS ON PROTEIN - DNA INTERACTIONS
Estrogen receptors are transcription factors activated by specific ligands. Upon ligand binding the receptors undergo structural changes and subsequently bind to specific DNA sequences. The conformational effect of ligand binding on the receptor–DNA complex, believed to influence gene transcription, is not yet understood. Here QCM-D is used to study molecular conformational changes in these complexes. Read more.

PROTEIN FIBRILLATION STUDIED WITH QCM-D
The ability of certain polypeptides to aggregate into long, thin fibrils called amyloid structures is associated with multiple protein folding disorders and is also a major problem in biotechnological and pharmaceutical applications. Here, QCM-D has been used to monitor the changes in thickness and viscoelastic properties of multilayer amyloid deposition in situ for the first time. This provides novel insights into the kinetics of protein fibrillation which other techniques cannot provide. Read more.