Modular, triple-resonance, transmission line DNP MAS probe for 500 MHz/330 GHz.

We describe the design and construction of a modular, triple-resonance, fully balanced, DNP-MAS probe based on transmission line technology and its integration into a 500 MHz/330 GHz DNP-NMR spectrometer. A novel quantitative probe design and characterization strategy is developed and employed to achieve optimal sensitivity, RF homogeneity and excellent isolation between channels. The resulting three channel HCN probe has a modular design with each individual, swappable module being equipped with connectorized, transmission line ports. This strategy permits attachment of a mating connector that facilitates accurate impedance measurements at these ports and allows characterization and adjustment (e.g. for balancing or tuning/matching) of each component individually. The RF performance of the probe is excellent; for example, the 13C channel attains a Rabi frequency of 280 kHz for a 3.2 mm rotor. In addition, a frequency tunable 330 GHz gyrotron operating at the second harmonic of the electron cyclotron frequency was developed for DNP applications. Careful alignment of the corrugated waveguide led to minimal loss of the microwave power, and an enhancement factor ε = 180 was achieved for U-13C urea in the glassy matrix at 80 K. We demonstrated the operation of the system with acquisition of multidimensional spectra of cross-linked lysozyme crystals which are insoluble in glycerol-water mixtures used for DNP and samples of RNA.

Pulsed Dynamic Nuclear Polarization with Trityl Radicals.

Continuous-wave (CW) dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is now established as a method of choice to enhance the sensitivity in a variety of NMR experiments. Nevertheless, there remains a need for the development of more efficient methods to transfer polarization from electrons to nuclei. Of particular interest are pulsed DNP methods because they enable a rapid and efficient polarization transfer that, in contrast with CW DNP methods, is not attenuated at high magnetic fields. Here we report nuclear spin orientation via electron spin-locking (NOVEL) experiments using the polarizing agent trityl OX063 in glycerol/water at a temperature of 80 K and a magnetic field of 0.34 T. (1)H NMR signal enhancements up to 430 are observed, and the buildup of the local polarization occurs in a few hundred nanoseconds. Thus, NOVEL can efficiently dynamically polarize (1)H atoms in a system that is of general interest to the solid-state DNP NMR community. This is a first, important step toward the general application of pulsed DNP at higher fields.

Structure and Mechanism of the Influenza A M218-60 Dimer of Dimers.

We report a magic angle spinning (MAS) NMR structure of the drug-resistant S31N mutation of M218-60 from Influenza A. The protein was dispersed in diphytanoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine lipid bilayers, and the spectra and an extensive set of constraints indicate that M218-60 consists of a dimer of dimers. In particular, ∼280 structural constraints were obtained using dipole recoupling experiments that yielded well-resolved (13)C-(15)N, (13)C-(13)C, and (1)H-(15)N 2D, 3D, and 4D MAS spectra, all of which show cross-peak doubling. Interhelical distances were measured using mixed (15)N/(13)C labeling and with deuterated protein, MAS at ωr/2π = 60 kHz, ω0H/2π = 1000 MHz, and (1)H detection of methyl-methyl contacts. The experiments reveal a compact structure consisting of a tetramer composed of four transmembrane helices, in which two opposing helices are displaced and rotated in the direction of the membrane normal relative to a four-fold symmetric arrangement, yielding a two-fold symmetric structure. Side chain conformations of the important gating and pH-sensing residues W41 and H37 are found to differ markedly from four-fold symmetry. The rmsd of the structure is 0.7 Å for backbone heavy atoms and 1.1 Å for all heavy atoms. This two-fold symmetric structure is different from all of the previous structures of M2, many of which were determined in detergent and/or with shorter constructs that are not fully active. The structure has implications for the mechanism of H(+) transport since the distance between His and Trp residues on different helices is found to be short. The structure also exhibits two-fold symmetry in the vicinity of the binding site of adamantyl inhibitors, and steric constraints may explain the mechanism of the drug-resistant S31N mutation.

Optimization of dynamic nuclear polarization experiments in aqueous solution at 15 MHz/9.7 GHz: a comparative study with DNP at 140 MHz/94 GHz.

Dynamic nuclear polarization is emerging as a potential tool to increase the sensitivity of NMR aiming at the detection of macromolecules in liquid solution. One possibility for such an experimental design is to perform the polarization step between electrons and nuclei at low magnetic fields and then transfer the sample to a higher field for NMR detection. In this case, an independent optimization of the polarizer and detection set ups is required. In the present paper we describe the optimization of a polarizer set up at 15 MHz (1)H NMR/9.7 GHz EPR frequencies based on commercial hardware. The sample consists of the nitroxide radical TEMPONE-D,(15)N in water, for which the dimensions were systematically decreased to fit the homogeneous B(1) region of a dielectric ENDOR resonator. With an available B(1) microwave field up to 13 G we observe a maximum DNP enhancement of -170 at room temperature by irradiating on either one of the EPR lines. The DNP enhancement was saturated at all polarizer concentrations. Pulsed ELDOR experiments revealed that the saturation level of the two hyperfine lines is such that the DNP enhancements are well consistent with the coupling factors derived from NMRD data. By raising the polarizing field and frequencies 10-fold, i.e. to 140 MHz (1)H/94 GHz EPR, we reach an enhancement of -43 at microwave field strengths (B(1) approximately 5 G). The results are discussed in view of an application for a DNP spectrometer.

Shuttle DNP spectrometer with a two-center magnet.

A DNP set-up is described where a liquid sample is hyperpolarized by the electron-nucleus Overhauser effect in a field of 0.34 T and transferred to a field of 14.09 T for NMR detection. In contrast to a previous set-up, using two dedicated magnets for polarization and detection, a dedicated ferroshim system was inserted into the bore of a 14.09 T shielded cryomagnet to provide a homogeneous low-field region in the stray field above the magnetic center. After polarization in the low-field the sample is transferred to the high-field magnetic center within 40 ms by a pneumatic shuttle system. In our set-up a standard high-resolution inverse (1)H/(13)C selective probe was used for NMR detection and a homebuilt EPR cavity, operating in the TM(110) mode was used for polarisation. First experimental data are presented. We observed a maximum proton Overhauser enhancement of up to epsilon(HF) = -3.7 in the high-field position for a 5 mM 4-Oxo-TEMPO-D,(15)N (TEMPONE)/H(2)O sample. While this reproduces the DNP enhancement observed also in the old set-up, with the new set-up we observe enhancement on larger molecules that were impossible to enhance in the old set-up. Therefore, we can demonstrate for the first time Overhauser enhanced high resolution proton spectra of glucose and 2,2-dimethyl-2-silapentane-5-sulfonic acid sodium salt (DSS) in D(2)O, where the high resolution spectrum was acquired in the high-field position after polarizing the sample in the low-field.

(1)H and (13)C dynamic nuclear polarization in aqueous solution with a two-field (0.35 T/14 T) shuttle DNP spectrometer.

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) permits increasing the NMR signal of nuclei by pumping the electronic spin transitions of paramagnetic centers nearby. This method is emerging as a powerful tool to increase the inherent sensitivity of NMR in structural biology aiming at detection of macromolecules. In aqueous solution, additional technical issues associated with the penetration of microwaves in water and heating effects aggravate the performance of the experiment. To examine the feasibility of low-field (9.7 GHz/0.35 T) DNP in high resolution NMR, we have constructed the prototype of a two-field shuttle DNP spectrometer that polarizes nuclei at 9.7 GHz/0.35 T and detects the NMR spectrum at 14 T. We report our first (1)H and (13)C DNP enhancements with this spectrometer. Effective enhancements up to 15 were observed for small molecules at (1)H 600 MHz/14 T as compared to the Boltzmann signal. The results provide a proof of principle for the feasibility of a shuttle DNP experiment and open up perspectives for the application potential of this method in solution NMR.