Crystallography matters ... more!

This event is part of activities of The National Institute of Complex Fluids (INCTFcx) and Nucleo de Apoio a Pesquisa em Fluidos Complexos (NAPFCx). It is organized together with the European Molecular Biology Laboratory - Hamburg (EMBL) and European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO). The main objective of the Course is to teach the young PhD students and postdocs from all areas of biology the methods applicable to study biological macromolecules in solution. We aim at a comprehensive coverage of the field including the major structural and biophysical techniques employed for the characterization of high and low resolution structure and structural transitions, macromolecular complex formation, protein folding and stability, protein-protein and protein-ligand interactions and enzymatic mechanisms. The Course will include lectures on small-angle X-ray and neutron scattering (SAXS/SANS), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), static and dynamic light scattering (SLS/DLS), analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC), differential and isothermal calorimetry (DSC/ITC) and spectroscopic approaches. Bioinformatic tools to analyze protein-protein interactions will be considered, and the joint use of the solution characterization methods with the major non-solution structural techniques including macromolecular crystallography (MX) and electron microscopy (EM) will be covered. Special attention will be paid to interdisciplinary approaches, where the synergistic use of complementary techniques leads to a comprehensive description of macromolecular systems.

The course will be held at the Adma Jafet Auditorium at Institute of Physics of the University of Sao Paulo (IFUSP), Brazil.

A maximum of 50 participants will be selected to attend the course. The registration fee of 50 Euro will be requested from the academic participants covering the event materials, lodging and local meals. Applicants from industry are expected to pay a 1000 Euro fee.

The Course is oriented towards applicants active in structural biology, mostly late Ph.D. students and early post-docs but more senior scientists, depending on circumstances, could also participate. Students working in Brazil or Brazilian students working abroad will be given preference but all applications are welcome.

Application deadline for the Course: October, 15th, 2013.