Scientific Program
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National User Facility
BioCARS is a national user facility for synchrotron-based structural biology. Two experimental stations (14-ID-B and 14-BM-C) are presently operated for macromolecular crystallography and (recently) fiber diffraction. All BioCARS beam time is available to the scientific community through the General User Program of the Advanced Photon Source. Extensive training and support are available to users through both informal and formal programs.
Scientific Specialties
- Time-resolved and Laue macromolecular crystallography (with 100ps time resolution). The facilities at BioCARS are unique at the APS; only two other beamlines in the world offer similar capabilities (ESRF ID09 and PF-AR NW14).
- Time-resolved solution scattering (with 100ps time resolution)
- Studies of biohazards at biosafety levels (BSL) 2 and 3. The BSL-3 facility is unique in the United States and one of two in the world (Diamond I03). All stations can be used for BSL-2/3 experiments; all necessary engineering controls and standard operating procedures are in place for safe conduct of such experiments.
- Nonstandard and customized experiments, e.g., on-line microspectrophotometer, topography of protein crystals, fiber diffraction (in collaboration with BioCAT, APS Sector 18).
- All standard macromolecular crystallography techniques (SAD/MAD, ultra-high resolution, large unit cells, etc.)
Funding
- BioCARS is supported by the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences grant P41GM103543 (formerly National Center for Research Resources P41RR007707).
- Facility upgrades to achieve approval for a BSL-2/3 rating were supported by funding from the Advanced Photon Source.
- Recent enhancement of time-resolved capabilities were funded in part through a collaboration with Philip Anfinrud (NIH/NIDDK).
More about BioCARS: Facility and Scientific Mission › (PDF)