Crosslinking Mass Spectrometry

Crosslinking mass spectrometry (XL-MS) is a versatile and powerful analytical technique for elucidating protein structures and examining protein-protein, protein-nucleic acid interactions at a molecular level. Combining chemical crosslinking with mass spectrometry provides details about spatial proximity, conformational changes, and interaction networks within and between proteins. Distance constraints obtained from XL-MS can guide and validate molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, AlphaFold predictions, and refine structures from cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and X-ray crystallography.

Thermo Scientific mass spectrometers offer high spectral quality for MS and MS/MS scans, allowing for confident localization and quantification of crosslinks. The integration of advanced techniques empowers scientists to gain a comprehensive understanding of proteins and their interactions, effectively bridging the gap between structural proteomics and systems biology.