Research infrastructure We can assist with measurement of interactions of proteins with other proteins, RNA, lipids and carbohydrates.
The Quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) instrument is a surface based analytical platform with capabilities similar to a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) instrument. The QCM-D has the ability to measure analytes as they adsorb or interact with the sensor surface in real time. This allows the kinetics of adsorption to be measured and biomolecular interactions to be probed, e.g. to determine binding affinities. Also the dissipation monitoring allows changes in the surfaces viscoelastic properties to be measured in real-time, which provides information about layer stiffness and makes it possible to follow structural changes occurring within the biomolecular layer. We are most often using the instrument with with silicon oxide coated sensors upon which we create supported lipid bilayers in order to study protein-lipid, protein-carbohydrate, or protein-protein interactions. The QCM-D is part of the BICU infrastructure who manages user fees.
More information can be found on: https://www.umu.se/en/research/infrastructure/biochemical-imaging-centre-umea-bicu/affinity/ (scroll down to quartz crystal microbalange with dissipation monitoring).
