Acquisition of an 800 MHz Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectrometer with a Cryoprobe

PROJECT SUMMARY This proposal seeks to acquire a Bruker ASCEND 800 MHz nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer with SampleJet, AVANCE NEO console, CryoPlatform, and TCI-H&F 5 mm solution-state CryoProbe for Northwestern University. The instrument will be placed in the Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center (IMSERC) facility on NU’s Evanston Campus. For more than 50 years, IMSERC has supported a diverse group of NIH-funded researchers and will ensure that the proposed acquisition is made available to the broadest population of NMR users at Northwestern University and throughout the Chicagoland area. The acquisition, maintenance, and operation of this new 800 MHz spectrometer will not require staffing or infrastructure modifications. Here, we describe the high-field NMR needs of 12 NIH-funded users to carry out biomedical research in the areas of gene therapy, drug abuse, neurodegenerative disease, cancer, atherosclerosis and more. The projects of all users will benefit from the increases in sensitivity, resolution, and near-optimal TROSY effect afforded by an increase in static magnetic field strength. The requested acquisition is not simply a more sensitive version of existing spectrometers, a local 800 MHz spectrometer will permit methodologies currently inaccessible in Chicago such as high throughput NMR-based screening, T1, T2, T1ρ, heteronuclear NOESY, CPMG relaxation dispersion, CEST, and 15N direct detection, which comprise a substantial proportion of funded project goals. The need for this instrument is urgent and immediate with the relocation of two major users to Northwestern University. Despite the presence of multiple major research centers in Chicago, there are no NMR spectrometers with magnetic fields higher than 600 MHz within an approximately two-hour drive. This forces users to send samples to out-of-state NMR facilities when instrument time becomes available. This arrangement makes it difficult to prioritize the study of precious NMR samples or provide meaningful student training opportunities. The resulting inconsistent access to a high-field spectrometer could jeopardize the progress of NIH-funded research projects in the labs of PI Ziarek and major User Han. The critical need for this new spectrometer is underscored by a strong institutional commitment of $1.43M in matching funds so that the educational and research goals of the growing NMR community at Northwestern University can be met.