Proteins are vital for life and perform a wide range of essential biochemical tasks in all living organisms. Cells of these organisms are hence under a constant pressure to maintain an optimal protein environment, assuring all proteins are correctly folded and functional.
Unfolded proteins are sticky and tend to form so-called protein aggregates with either themselves, other proteins or when binding to exposed surfaces within the cell. Aggregation mechanisms depend on both primary amino acid sequence of the protein and external environment such as pH, salt and temperature. Most protein aggregates can be reversed or degraded by the cell protein quality system (molecular chaperones or proteases).
However, sometimes the control mechanisms fail and accumulated aggregates transform into amyloid plaques and other protein megastructures. This is the case in protein misfolding diseases, proteopathies, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Amyloids behave very differently to functional soluble protein, for example in regards to rigidity. Current trends within this field of research is to study the kinetic buildup of such megastructures and consequently also searching for therapeutic agents that prevent buildup and hence disease. Protein misfolding diseases are a huge threat to the increasing ageing population, with such diseases affecting more than 10% of all people over the age of 65.
Learn about how aggregation of protein Tau in tauopathies, a sub-set of neurodegenerative diseases, can be studied with QCM-D.
QCM-D is a powerful tool in the analysis of lipid-based systems
If you are looking for a high-end instrument but cannot determine whether it is the Pro or Omni that will best suit your needs, here is the guide for you
Explore the key factors influencing QCM baseline stability and get advice on management strategies
Learn more about how dissipation can be measured in QCM:s and the pros and cons of the different methods.
Read about how QSense QCM-D was used to study antibody fouling on steel surfaces.
Read about what determines the sensing depth of the QCM-D technology and get examples of typical values
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Read the guidelines on how to decide which QCM instrument will be the most suitable for your needs
Read about how protein adsorption at various surface and solution conditions quickly can be measured
Read about what single-harmonic and multi-harmonic QCM-D means and what the difference is between these instruments.
Read about how QSense QCM-D analysis is used as a powerful tool to investigate protein-lipid nanoparticles binding affinity