Biomolecular NMR: Past and future

Arch Biochem Biophys. 2017 Aug 15:628:3-16. doi: 10.1016/j.abb.2017.05.003. Epub 2017 May 8.

Abstract

The editors of this special volume suggested this topic, presumably because of the perspective lent by our combined >90-year association with biomolecular NMR. What follows is our personal experience with the evolution of the field, which we hope will illustrate the trajectory of change over the years. As for the future, one can confidently predict that it will involve unexpected advances. Our narrative is colored by our experience in using the NMR Facility for Biomedical Studies at Carnegie-Mellon University (Pittsburgh) and in developing similar facilities at Purdue (1977-1984) and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1984-). We have enjoyed developing NMR technology and making it available to collaborators and users of these facilities. Our group's association with the Biological Magnetic Resonance data Bank (BMRB) and with the Worldwide Protein Data Bank (wwPDB) has also been rewarding. Of course, many groups contributed to the early growth and development of biomolecular NMR, and our brief personal account certainly omits many important milestones.

Keywords: Biomolecular NMR history; Computational approaches; NMR instrumentation; Pulse sequence development; Sample preparation and labeling.

Publication types

  • Historical Article
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Databases, Protein
  • History, 20th Century
  • History, 21st Century
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular / history*
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular / instrumentation
  • United States