Lionel Pochet

Projet Equipement - Microscale Thermophoresis

The present proposal aims to equip several research groups from three research institutes (LDRI, IREC, DDUV) and one research centre (NAMEDIC) of two universities of the Wallonie-Bruxelles Federation (UCL and UNamur) with a microscale thermophoresis instrument (MST). Briefly, MST allows for quantitative analysis of protein interactions in free solution and with low sample consumption. The technique is based on thermophoresis, the directed motion of molecules in temperature gradients.

Thermophoresis is highly sensitive to all types of binding-induced changes of molecular properties, be it in size, charge, hydration shell or conformation. In an all-optical approach, an infrared laser is used for local heating, and molecule mobility in the temperature gradient is analysed via fluorescence. In standard MST, one binding partner is fluorescently labeled. However, MST can also be performed label-free by exploiting intrinsic protein UV-fluorescence.

It should be noted that currently none of these laboratories or institutes have access to this technology. However, the measurement of biomolecular interactions and the subsequent derivatisation of dissociation constant (Kd) in a very efficient and rapid way being increasingly important in modern drug discovery, we are convinced that the acquisition of an MST instrument would greatly facilitate and accelerate our research.