Figure 1
SAXS-based screening using the volatility ratio VR, exemplified by the histidine-binding protein (HisBP) titrations. (a) 96-well plate setup for small-scale screening divided into eight twelve-point titrations, spanning from the apo ligand-less measurement to the saturated ligand-excess measurement. (b) Theoretical binding curves for a strong (blue) and weak (red) receptor–ligand interaction at constant receptor concentrations. The former reaches saturation at approximately 1:1 ratio, whereas the latter does not saturate even at 10:1 excess. (c) Example titrations of 160 µM HisBP against Arg and Orn, visualized by the buffer-subtracted SAXS intensity I(q). The apo I(q) is coloured grey, with SAXS profiles of other titration points coloured according to ligand:receptor ratios. (d) Normalized ratio R(q) versus apo protein I(q), matching equation (4). (e) Geometric average Ri for each complete Shannon channel, matching equation (6). Points have been horizontally shifted to aid visualization. (f) Computed VR curves for a preliminary titration of HisBP versus eight active and non-active amino-acids. |