Examples

These publications contain high quality experimental design, data analysis and presentation.

Sparks, R. P., J. L. Jenkins and R. Fratti - Use of Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) to Determine Binding Affinities and Kinetic Parameters Between Components Important in Fusion Machinery. Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) 1860: 199-210; (2019). Goto reference

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) can be used to analyze both binding affinities and kinetic parameters between a ligand and an analyte. SPR can be used to measure binding affinity of proteins involved in fusion such as between SNAREs, SNAREs, and proteins that interact with them such as Sec18 (NSF) or Sec17 (alpha-SNAP), or to measure the binding of any fusion-related protein to a specific lipid or other small molecules; however, K(D)s are determined by SPR using a titration of concentrations of analyte and a maximum point on the sensorgram signifying saturation of the protein in order to determine a steady-state K(D).

Keeler, C. et al. The kinetics of binding human prolactin, but not growth hormone, to the prolactin receptor vary over a physiologic pH range. Biochemistry. 46: 2398-2410; (2007).

pH dependency of the interaction. A member of the family of hematopoietic cytokines, human prolactin (hPRL) serves a dual role both as an endocrine hormone and as an autocrine cytokine or growth factor. During investigation of the solution structural properties of hPRL, there was a surprising pH dependence of its structural stability over a range from approximately pH 6.0 to pH 8.0. Surface plasmon resonance analysis of the interaction between hPRL and the extracellular domain (ECD) of the hPRL receptor reveals a selective 500-fold change in the dissociation rate between pH 8.3 and pH 5.8. In comparison, the interaction of hGH with the same receptor ECD did not demonstrate any significant dependence on pH.

Cole, D. K. et al. Human TCR-binding affinity is governed by MHC class restriction. J.Immunol. 178: 5727-5734; (2007).

Full kinetic chracterisation. T cell recognition is initiated by the binding of TCRs to peptide-MHCs (pMHCs), the interaction being characterized by weak affinity and fast kinetics. Previously, only 16 natural TCR/pMHC interactions have been measured by surface plasmon resonance (SPR). Of these, 5 are murine class I, 5 are murine class II, and 6 are human class I-restricted responses. Therefore, a significant gap exists in our understanding of human TCR/pMHC binding due to the limited SPR data currently available for human class I responses and the absence of SPR data for human class II-restricted responses.

Alexander-Brett, J. M. and Fremont, D. H.. Dual GPCR and GAG mimicry by the M3 chemokine decoy receptor. J.Exp.Med. 204: 3157-3172; (2007).

Different approaches to determine kinetic constants. Viruses have evolved a myriad of evasion strategies focused on undermining chemokine-mediated immune surveillance, exemplified by the mouse gamma-herpes virus 68 M3 decoy receptor. Crystal structures of M3 in complex with C chemokine ligand 1/lymphotactin and CC chemokine ligand 2/monocyte chemo attractant protein 1 reveal that invariant chemokine features associated with G protein-coupled receptor binding are primarily recognized by the decoy C-terminal domain, whereas the N-terminal domain (NTD) reconfigures to engage divergent basic residue clusters on the surface of chemokines. Favourable electrostatic forces dramatically enhance the association kinetics of chemokine binding by M3, with a primary role ascribed to acidic NTD regions that effectively mimic glycosaminoglycan interactions.