Spring Break
Prof Kern discovers new method of photographing enzymes
A Brandeis scientist's new study will be helpful in the production of medical drugs.
by Ruth Orbach
Staff writer
News | 1/22/08
Posted online at 3:58 AM EST on 1/22/08
/ Last updated at 7:21 PM EST on 1/22/08
Enzymes have always been a passion for Dr. Dorothee Kern (BCHM). The research scientist has studied the proteins that serve as catalysts for chemical reactions since she was in college. Now at Brandeis, her love and commitment for science and etymology has led her to discover an innovative method of photographing them.
"Catalysts always fascinated me since I was a student," Kern said.
Kern graduated from Martin Luther University in Halle, West Germany with a degree in biochemistry, and came to Brandeis in 1999 largely coincidentally during her first year as a postdoctorate student at the University of California at Berkeley. She was not looking for a job at the time but instead was concerned with "having a good time with my research." After speaking at a conference at Berkeley, she was invited to work at Brandeis as a professor and researcher. She accepted the position, as Brandeis is one of the leading institutes for etymological research, Kern said.
During her study, Kern worked to improve the photographing of enzymes, the proteins that accelerate reactions within the human body. Watching enzymes in action has been fundamental to progress in the development of medicine. Previously, scientists had only been able to snap photographs of the enzymes, but Kern and her team were essentially able to create a movie of the changing proteins. Kern used "big magnets" at Brandeis to obtain more close-up and accurate pictures of the enzyme movement, as well as closer together in time. She used nuclear magnetic resonance, a method of enzyme photography that is strong enough to capture the quick motion of an enzyme reaction.
The study proved groundbreaking, as Kern and her research team of Brandeis graduate students used a variety of theories and mechanical methods to capture the enzymes as they changed shape even before the presence of a substrate, the molecules at the beginning of the chemical reaction, which are then converted to different molecules by the enzyme.
"Catalysts always fascinated me since I was a student," Kern said.
Kern graduated from Martin Luther University in Halle, West Germany with a degree in biochemistry, and came to Brandeis in 1999 largely coincidentally during her first year as a postdoctorate student at the University of California at Berkeley. She was not looking for a job at the time but instead was concerned with "having a good time with my research." After speaking at a conference at Berkeley, she was invited to work at Brandeis as a professor and researcher. She accepted the position, as Brandeis is one of the leading institutes for etymological research, Kern said.
During her study, Kern worked to improve the photographing of enzymes, the proteins that accelerate reactions within the human body. Watching enzymes in action has been fundamental to progress in the development of medicine. Previously, scientists had only been able to snap photographs of the enzymes, but Kern and her team were essentially able to create a movie of the changing proteins. Kern used "big magnets" at Brandeis to obtain more close-up and accurate pictures of the enzyme movement, as well as closer together in time. She used nuclear magnetic resonance, a method of enzyme photography that is strong enough to capture the quick motion of an enzyme reaction.
The study proved groundbreaking, as Kern and her research team of Brandeis graduate students used a variety of theories and mechanical methods to capture the enzymes as they changed shape even before the presence of a substrate, the molecules at the beginning of the chemical reaction, which are then converted to different molecules by the enzyme.
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