| Structure
of the kinase domain of CaMKII
and modeling the holoenzyme
The rate and intensity of calcium (Ca2+)
currents that oscillate through the plasma membrane around
a cell affect such diverse phenomena as fertilization, the
cardiac rhythm, and even the formation of memories. How does
the cell sense these digital oscillations and transduce them
into a cellular signal, such as changes in phosphorylation
(addition of a phosphate group to a protein) or gene transcription?
A group from the University of California, Berkeley, the Yale
University School of Medicine, and Berkeley Lab has combined
protein crystallography and small-angle x-ray scattering to
give a first glimpse into what this conversion may look like
as well as the structural consequences of the conversion.
Full
story.
Publication about this research: O.S.
Rosenberg, S. Deindl, R.-J. Sung, A.C. Nairn, and J. Kuriyan,
"Structure of the autoinhibited kinase domain of CaMKII
and SAXS analysis of the holoenzyme," Cell 123,
849 (2005).
Contact: Oren Rosenberg, oren.rosenberg@yale.edu
When DNA needs
to stand up
and be counted
DNA microarrays are small metal, glass,
or silicon chips covered with patterns of short single-stranded
DNA (ssDNA). These "DNA chips" are revolutionizing
biotechnology, allowing scientists to identify and count many
DNA sequences simultaneously. They are the enabling technology
for genomic-based medicine and are a critical component of
advanced diagnostic systems for medical and homeland security
applications. Like digital chips, DNA chips are parallel,
accurate, fast, and small. These advantages, however, can
only be realized if the fragile biomolecules survive the attachment
process intact. Furthermore, biomolecules must be properly
oriented to perform their biological function. In other words,
the DNA literally must stand up to be counted. Understanding
both the attachment and orientation of DNA on gold surfaces
was the goal of recent experiments performed at ALS Beamline
8.0.1
by an international collaboration of scientists. Full
story.
Publication about this research: D.Y.
Petrovykh, V. Perez-Dieste, A. Opdahl, H. Kimura-Suda, J.M.
Sullivan, M.J. Tarlov, F. J. Himpsel, and L.J. Whitman, "Nucleobase
orientation and ordering in films of single-stranded DNA on
gold," J. Am. Chem. Soc. 128,
2 (2006).
Contact: Dmitri Petrovykh, dmitri.petrovykh@nrl.navy.mil
DOE Deputy Secretary
Clay Sell tours ALS
Clay Sell, the No. 2 executive at the
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and deputy to Secretary Samuel
Bodman, toured the ALS during a visit to Berkeley Lab on May
18. As Deputy Secretary of Energy, Sell serves as the Department's
Chief Operating Officer and assists the Secretary with policy
and programmatic oversight of the 100,000 employee, $23 billion
agency.
Janos Kirz and Clay Sell in ALS lobby.
Led by Berkeley Lab Director Steve Chu
and Acting ALS Director Janos Kirz, the tour of the ALS stopped
by Sector 5 to hear from Paul Adams about the protein crystallography
work being done there. A walk over the accelerator and under
the dome provided Sell with an impressive overview of the
facility. The group also visited Bldg. 10, adjacent to the
ALS, where ALS Deputy Director Ben Feinberg discussed the
need for a new User Support Building on the site. In addition
to touring the ALS, the Deputy Secretary visited the newly
dedicated Molecular Foundry and was briefed on a variety of
Berkeley Lab initiatives such as the Supernova Acceleration
Probe, the Helios energy project, and the Bevatron demolition.
On this, his first visit to Berkeley Lab, Sell expressed his
admiration for the people, the science, and the facilities
he observed on tours and briefings.
Call for general
sciences proposals:
Due July 5, 2006
The User Services Office is accepting
general-user proposals from scientists who wish to conduct
research in the general sciences at the ALS during the running
period from February through June 2007. The deadline for submissions
is Wednesday, July 5, 2006. (This deadline does not apply
to protein crystallography proposals, which have a separate
process and schedule.) To submit a new proposal, go to the
online form, "ALS
General User Proposal and Request for Beamtime."
 If
you have an existing proposal for which you would like to
receive beam time during the February through June 2007 cycle,
you must submit a Proposal Renewal Form. Scientists with existing
proposals that are eligible for renewal have been sent instructions
on how to request a login and password to access their proposal
information and forms. Proposals can be renewed for up to
three six-month cycles following their initial submission.
After a total of four cycles, a new proposal must be submitted.
The numeric rating for each proposal
will be communicated to the user along with any comments from
the Proposal Study Panel. The cutoff rating for each beamline
in the previous proposal cycle is published on the Web (see
link below). The following resources are available for further
information:
ALS
User Services Administrator
General-user
proposals
ALS online forms
Beamline
information
Proposal
scores for July 2006–January 2007
Contact: alsproposals@lbl.gov
2006 ALS Users'
Meeting update:
Workshops announced
 A
record number of 15 workshops are currently being scheduled
in conjunction with this year's ALS Users' Meeting, to be
held at Berkeley Lab October 9–11. Several of the workshops
are being conducted jointly with the Stanford Synchrotron
Radiation Laboratory (SSRL) Users' Meeting, which will be
held immediately following the ALS meeting. The current workshop
topics and their organizers are listed below. Detailed workshop
descriptions, along with general meeting information, abstract
submission deadlines, and registration procedures will be
announced when they become available. Elke Arenholz and Hendrik
Ohldag are the overall program committee co-chairs.
Advanced Magnetic Spectroscopy*
Elke Arenholz and Hendrik Ohldag
Advanced Techniques in Angle-Resolved
Photoemission
Zahid Hussain and Eli Rotenberg
Basic and Advanced Scanning Transmission
X-Ray Microscope Measurements
Tolek Tyliszczak
Challenges and Opportunities
with Momentum-Resolved Inelastic Scattering*
Zahid Hasan, Zahid Hussain, and Z.-X. Shen
Doing Research at Synchrotrons:
An Introduction‡
John Bargar and Andrew Doran
Electron Dynamics in Spin Systems†
Yves Acremann, Peter Fischer, and Andreas Scholl
Multicolor Scientific Opportunities
at CIRCE and the ALS
Michael C. Martin and Kevin Wilson
New Tools for Automated Crystal
Mounting and Data Analysis‡
Paul Adams, Aina Cohen, Nicholas Sauter, Michael Soltis, and
Christine Trame
Nonlinear Phenomena in Atoms,
Molecules, and Clusters Studied with FELs*
Ali Belkacem and Ernie Glover
Prospects for Studies of Exotic,
Transient, and Ultradilute Gas-Phase Targets
Nora Berrah and Erwin Poliakoff
Soft X-Ray Resonant Scattering
and Reflectivity*
Harald Ade, Jeff Kortright, and Jan Lüning
Structure from Coherent Scattering:
Dynamics and Static Imaging
Chris Jacobsen and Steve Kevan
Theoretical Perspectives of Resonant
Inelastic Soft X-Ray Scattering
Jinghua Guo
Tomography with Soft and Hard
X Rays at the ALS
Alastair MacDowell and Gerry McDermott
Ultrafast Dynamics on Surfaces
and in Liquids Studied by Soft X Rays†
Anders Nilsson and Aaron Lindenberg
*Joint ALS/SSRL, held at ALS
†Joint ALS/SSRL, held at SSRL
‡Joint ALS/SSRL, held at both locations
Contacts: Elke Arenholz, EArenholz@lbl.gov;
Hendrik Ohldag, HOhldag@lbl.gov
ALS Doctoral
Fellowships
in Residence
 There's
still time to send in applications for ALS Doctoral Fellowships
in Residence for the 2006–2007 academic year. The fellowships
enable students who have passed their Ph.D. qualifying or
comprehensive verbal and written exams (generally third-year
students) to acquire hands-on scientific training and develop
professional maturity for independent research. Applicants
must be full-time, currently enrolled students in a Ph.D.
program in the physical or biological sciences, pursuing thesis
research based on the use of synchrotron radiation. The fellowships
are offered as one-year appointments with the possibility
of renewal. Successful applicants will be compensated with
a $16,000 annual stipend. Additionally, fellows will be matched
with an on-site mentor (generally a beamline scientist) and
have access to ALS resources, including beam time. Fellows
are expected to present their results at a meeting or as a
seminar at the end of the fellowship year. Applications are
due by June 9, 2006. For more information, go to the ALS
Fellowships Web page. Individuals from underrepresented
groups are encouraged to apply.
Contact: Adriana Reza, AReza@lbl.gov
Shipping and
receiving
procedures at the ALS
All ALS staff and users must follow certain
procedures for packing, labeling, and sending shipments to
or from the ALS. These shipping procedures are required for
- all materials and equipment brought
to the lab for experiments;
- items that are being returned for
repairs or refunds to manufacturers or vendors; and
- any item borrowed from, or being
lent to, another institution.
To help clarify the process, the ALS
shipping and receiving Web page has been revised. Information
has been added about what documentation you need to secure
and when. It is imperative that we monitor, track, and record
the movement of all DOE property at all times. Please take
a moment to read the contents of the revised Web page. If
you have any questions, please contact Gary Giangrasso at
510-486-4494.
Contact: Jerry Kekos, JMKekos@lbl.gov |
