1H-Detected Biomolecular NMR under Fast Magic-Angle Spinning

Since the first pioneering studies on small deuterated peptides dating more than 20 years ago, H-1 detection has evolved into the most efficient approach for investigation of biomolecular structure, dynamics, and interactions by solid-state NMR. The development of faster and faster magic-angle spinning (MAS) rates (up to 150 kHz today) at ultrahigh magnetic fields has triggered a real revolution in the field. This new spinning regime reduces the H-1-H-1 dipolar couplings, so that a direct detection of H-1 signals, for long impossible without proton dilution, has become possible at high resolution. The switch from the traditional MAS NMR approaches with C-13 and N-15 detection to H-1 boosts the signal by more than an order of magnitude, accelerating the site-specific analysis and opening the way to more complex immobilized biological systems of higher molecular weight and available in limited amounts. This paper reviews the concepts underlying this recent leap forward in sensitivity and resolution, presents a detailed description of the experimental aspects of acquisition of multidimensional correlation spectra with fast MAS, and summarizes the most successful strategies for the assignment of the resonances and for the elucidation of protein structure and conformational dynamics. It finally outlines the many examples where H-1-detected MAS NMR has contributed to the detailed characterization of a variety of crystalline and noncrystalline biomolecular targets involved in biological processes ranging from catalysis through drug binding, viral infectivity, amyloid fibril formation, to transport across lipid membranes.