Previous Editions__________________________________________________________________________SSRL Headlines Vol. 10, No. 5 November, 2009__________________________________________________________________________
Contents of this Issue:
A research group led by Prof. Gerald Stubbs from Vanderbilt University used
SSRL's Beam Line 4-2 to collect fiber diffraction data from hamster and mouse
PrPSc amyloids. Results of their measurements were consistent with a
beta-helical structure, which had been previously hypothesized from other
methods. They also looked at a recombinant PrPSc amyloid that is
less infectious than the wild type. The recombinant amyloid structure formed
stacked beta-sheets, quite different from the natural amyloid structure. Yet
they found that a recombinant PrPSc amyloid isolated from an in
vivo system formed the beta-helical structure found in the native amyloid.
The researchers propose that there could be a link between structure and
infectivity, but more research must be done to find the basis of the
connection. This work was published in the October 6 issue of the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences.
To learn more about this research see the full scientific highlight
Biological macromolecules, like proteins and nucleic acids, are good examples
of the form follows function paradigm; and, in the case of these molecules,
deformation follows function as well. Flexibility in proteins and nucleic acids
allows for the recognition of targets, the binding of complexes, and the
adoption of functional configurations. Recent research at SSRL Beam Line 12-2
see: Dervan_12-2_DNA.html
Organic semiconductors have a lot to offer in electronics. They are cheap and
flexible, and the production process is much simpler than for traditional
silicon chips. Applications such as computer display screens, digital signs or
magazines made of "electronic paper" have been possibilities for more than a
decade, but their full potential seems always just around the corner. A
persistent problem is that performance from transistor to transistor varies
much more than can be allowed in commercially viable devices.
"You can make a single device that has high 'charge mobility,' but you really
need to make thousands of them," said Alberto Salleo, an assistant professor of
materials science and engineering at Stanford and a senior co-author of the
paper. "Most research groups report a high variation in that mobility. What we
did here is try to understand what causes the variation."
Read more at:
see the related Science Highlight at:
It was polar bears that got Yonath interested in the human ribosome: she read a
book about polar bears, and wondered what kind of mechanism would preserve the
bears' ribosome so they wouldn't fall apart or be degraded during hibernation.
The Ribosome is perhaps the most essential structure within our cells. They
read the plans carried in DNA through its intermediary, messenger RNA, to build
the proteins necessary for life. The delicate ribosome was easily destroyed
under examination, but knowing that nature had its own method of preserving it
made Yonath believe that there must be a way to crystallize and study it.
Read more at:http://today.slac.stanford.edu/feature/2009/yonath.asp
In this brief article, I want to talk about the nature of this new job, both in
the context of SLAC and in the broader DOE National Laboratory system.
The CRO is another of the O's that are a central element of the laboratory's
management structure. Under the leadership of Persis (who has a role analogous
to a Chief Executive Officer in the corporate sense), SLAC's Chief Operating
Officer Sandy Merola, Chief Financial Officer Susan Calandra, Chief Information
Officer Don Lemma, Chief Safety Officer Craig Ferguson and the Chief Research
Officer (myself) have roles and responsibilities that support, coordinate and
represent important activities cutting across many areas of the laboratory.
At SLAC, some of my own specific roles and responsibilities as CRO include
coordination with the lab director and COO on topics of mutual concern that
relate to SLAC's research agenda. I am also responsible for coordinating the
science and technology component of the Annual DOE Laboratory Plan and for the
annual PEMP science and technology goals. Another area of responsibility is in
coordinating the development of international agreements and Memoranda of
Understanding in scientific areas relevant to the lab's mission. I will also
coordinate the annual Laboratory Directed Research and Development process,
interfacing with others who expertly manage aspects such as the external peer
review. Read more at:
"SSRL is an established, mature facility, whereas LCLS is young and in the
process of developing a program from a user's standpoint," Evans said. "The end
goal is that, from the user perspective, the systems you see would be equitable
at SSRL and LCLS."
To help SLAC offer world-class user programs in addition to world-class
facilities, Evans will work to combine safety and operations programs so that
users will see congruency between the two user facilities. Users will see
consistency between SSRL and LCLS programs during the proposal review process,
throughout a unified training program, and when interacting with support staff
who will have similar roles and responsibilities at each facility. These
commonalities will enable smoother transition for users who may have worked at
SSRL in the past and are starting experiments at LCLS.
Read more at: http://today.slac.stanford.edu/a/2009/11-18.htm
Also of interest, safety officials and administrators recently met at the ALS
to discuss a similar effort to develop review and authorization processes and
web tools geared to provide a consistent user safety program across all of the
light sources - where practical.
With user operations at both SSRL and LCLS coinciding with the current flu
season (and added concerns about the risk of the H1N1 "swine" flu), we want to
send a brief reminder about influenza symptoms to be on the watch for, how it
is spread, and how you can protect yourself and others. This is particularly
important at an international user facility like ours that attracts researchers
who travel from a wide variety of locations and work long hours in close
quarters.
Flu Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body
aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people may have vomiting and
diarrhea. People may be infected with the flu, including 2009 H1N1, and have
respiratory symptoms without a fever. Flu viruses are spread mainly from person
to person through coughing or sneezing or by touching their mouth or nose after
having contact with a surface or object with flu viruses on it.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends taking these everyday
steps to protect your health:
If a large-scale flu outbreak or any other emergency situation were to occur at
SLAC, emergency information can be found on the SLAC Emergency Status telephone
line (877-447-7522) and on the SLAC Emergency Web page
http://www-group.slac.stanford.edu/esh/emergency/.
For additional information, see:
For SSRL science highlights related to pandemic flu see:
December 1 is the next deadline for submitting new X-ray, VUV and
Macromolecular Crystallography standard proposals. For more information on
proposal deadlines, instructions, and forms see: http://www-ssrl.slac.stanford.edu/userresources/proposals.html
If you miss the December 1 deadline for submitting standard proposals, April 1
is the next deadline for macromolecular crystallography proposals and June 1
for X-ray/VUV proposals.
Additionally, time is reserved on many beam lines for rapid access proposals. A
full listing of the Rapid Access applications is available at:
__________________________________________________________________________
SSRL Headlines is published electronically monthly to inform SSRL users,
sponsors and other interested people about happenings at SSRL. SSRL is a
national synchrotron user facility operated by Stanford University for the
U.S. Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy
Sciences. Additional support for
the structural biology program is provided by
the DOE
Office of Biological and Environmental Research, the NIH
National Center for Research Resources and the NIH Institute for General Medical
Sciences. Additional information about
SSRL and its operation and schedules is available from the SSRL WWW
site.
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