“All That Glitters is Not Necessarily Gold: the accurate identification of metals in metalloproteins and post X-ray diffraction structural remediation”

Edward Snell, President & CEO, Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute

Accurate metal identification in metalloprotein models deposited in the protein data bank is suspect in a significant number of cases. By directly identifying and quantifying the metal through high-throughput particle induced emission of X-rays, samples can be analyzed pre- or post-diffraction without concern for protein stability. We show that this analysis can reveal new structural features, leads to alternative ways of verifying the metal, and can considerably improve the overall model, and thereby mechanistic understanding.