Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Two NMR papers in PNAS

P.A. Chong, H. Lin, J.L. Wrana, and J.D. Forman-Kay, "Coupling of tandem Smad ubiquitination regulatory factor (Smurf) WW domains modulates target specificity," Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 107 (2010) 18404-18409. http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1003023107

H. Ghasriani, T. Ducat, C.T. Hart, F. Hafizi, N. Chang, A. Al-Baldawi, S.H. Ayed, P. Lundström, J.A.R. Dillon, and N.K. Goto, "Appropriation of the MinD protein-interaction motif by the dimeric interface of the bacterial cell division regulator MinE," Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 107 (2010) 18416-18421. http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1007141107

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Recognition: Hiyam Hamaed

Hiyam Hamaed (University of Windsor) has been awarded the Governor General's Gold Medal as the top graduate student in her cohort. Hiyam did her Ph.D. in solid-state NMR under the supervision of Robert Schurko. While working on her Ph.D. project "Solid-state NMR spectroscopy of unreceptive nuclei in inorganic and organic systems" Hiyam was a frequent user of the 900 NMR Facility in Ottawa. Congratulations with the Gold Medal, Hiyam!

Read a feature story about Hiyam in the University of Windsor's Daily News (external link).

Thursday, October 14, 2010

NMR paper in Nature

A.M. Ruschak, T.L. Religa, S. Breuer, S. Witt and L.E. Kay, "The proteasome antechamber maintains substrates in an unfolded state," Nature 467 (2010) 868–871. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature09444

Review in Annual Reports on NMR Spectroscopy

John A. Weil, "Magnetic Resonance of Systems with Equivalent Spin-1/2 Nuclides," Annual Reports on NMR Spectroscopy 71 (2010) 1-34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-089054-8.00001-0

Thursday, October 7, 2010

IYC 2011 International Year of Chemistry

2011 is the International Year of Chemistry (IYC). IYC is a global celebration devoted to chemistry and its role in the well-being of society. Through events at the local, provincial, national, and international levels, organizers hope to spark enthusiasm for this central science in all people of all ages.

The Chemical Institute of Canada is proud to be leading the Canadian initiative and all CIC members are encouraged to join in the celebrations in 2011 by holding events of their own or participating in the many events planned throughout the year.

IYC will be promoted in Canada through activities and programs such as a Canadian stamp, the publication of Canadian chemistry milestones, Science Rendezvous, YouTube contest, Chemistry Olympiads, National Chemistry Week, partnerships with developing countries and global experiments. We are hoping to reach over 500,000 Canadians in our outreach campaign.

To learn about IYC and how to get involved visit the Canadian IYC website hosted by CIC at http://www.iyc2011.ca

Canadian IYC Organizing Committee

Monday, October 4, 2010

New NMR Book: Solid-State NMR Studies of Biopolymers

edited by Anne McDermott, Tatyana Polenova
Hardcover: 592 pages
Publisher: Wiley; September 2010
Language: English
ISBN: 978-0470721223
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0470721227
http://www.amazon.ca/dp/0470721227

Wiley: "The field of solid state NMR of biological samples has blossomed recently, requiring new practitioners in industry and academia to have fundamental understanding of this technology. Discussed are Solid State NMR methods for studying structure dynamics and ligand-binding in biopolymers as well as RF pulse sequences for various applications, including not only a systematic catalog but also a discussion of theoretical tools for analysis of pulse sequences. Including practical examples of biochemical applications, this dependable EMR handbook thoroughly examines a field sure to expand in the years ahead."

Canadian contributions

V. Ladizhansky, "Dipolar-Based Torsion Angle Measurements for Protein Structure Determination," Chapter 14, Solid State NMR Studies of Biopolymers (EMR Books), Eds. A.E. McDermott and T. Polenova, Wiley (2010) pp. 273-284. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9780470034590.emrstm1153

M. Auger, "Structural and Dynamics Studies of Lipids by Solid-State NMR ", Chapter 27, Solid State NMR Studies of Biopolymers (EMR Books), Eds. A.E. McDermott and T. Polenova, Wiley (2010) pp. 463-472. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9780470034590.emrstm1100

Table of Contents and Google preview are available (Wiley).