Our research is enabled by excellent instrumentation in NMR, EM, protein production and characterization.
NMR facility
Solution-state NMR machines with cryogenically cooled probes at 600 and 800 MHz (1H Larmor frequency) provide highest sensitivity to study soluble biomolecular assemblies. Equipment for solution-NMR under high pressure (3000 bar) allows probing the impact of pressure on dynamics and conformational equilibria.
Magic-angle-spinning NMR is ideal for studying insoluble proteins, such as membrane proteins or very large assemblies. ISTA’s equipment (600, 700, 800 Hz) includes a range of probes for magic-angle spinning up to 111 kHz and 1H-detection (0.7 mm, 1.3 mm, 1.9 mm), while larger-volume probes are ideal for 13C-detected NMR applications.
We actively develop NMR methods to push the frontiers of NMR applications for biomolecular structure and dynamics studies.
Find more information about the NMR facility here.
Electron microscopy facility
ISTA’s Cryo-EM facility is equipped with:
- a 300 kV Thermo Scientific Titan Krios TEM (including a Volta phase plate, a post-GIF Gatan K3 and a Falcon 3)
- a 200 kV Thermo Scientific Glacios TEM (including a Volta phase plate and Falcon 3)
- a Thermo Scientific Aquilos cryo-FIBSEM
- a Leica cryo-CLEM setup
Protein production and characterization
Protein service unit of ISTA’s Lab Support Facility hosts a variety of equipment for protein production, purification and biophysical characterization.