# Proposal for an Administrative Supplement  for Equipment Purchases for NIGMS Awardees NOT-GM-22-017

> **NIH NIH R01** · VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $236,127

## Abstract

Project Summary for Parent Grant R01GM132329
Membrane proteins are essential in living organisms. Protein-lipid interactions are critical for membrane
protein structural and functional integrity. High-resolution membrane protein structures are in high
demand for understanding their biology and drug development based on structure. Extraction of
membrane proteins from cell membranes is frequently required for biochemical and biophysical research.
Currently, detergents are the most often used method for extracting membrane proteins. Detergents
have several downsides, including the destruction of lipid bilayers and the removal of essential lipid
molecules from membrane proteins. We are creating a detergent-free native cell membrane
nanoparticles technology for membrane protein research. The native cell membrane nanoparticles
system is made up of three parts: 1) Polymers that are membrane-active. 2) Methods for creating native
cell membrane nanoparticles. 3) Cryo-EM single particle investigation of native cell membrane
nanoparticles. We suggest creating a system that is applicable to both bacterial and eukaryotic membrane
proteins. Specific Aim 1 focuses on building techniques to create native cell membrane nanoparticles
utilizing our chosen model membrane proteins and constructing a membrane-active polymer library. We
have created four prototype membrane active polymers; we intend to expand the active membrane
polymers utilizing both commercially available styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers and polymers made
in laboratories using similar procedures. Specific Ami 2 focuses on creating procedures for determining
the high-resolution structure of selected bacterial model membrane proteins. The third specific aim is to
create procedures for high-resolution structures of selected eukaryotic model membrane proteins. The
proposed study is interesting because it offers a novel detergent-free method for investigating membrane
proteins in their native lipid context. As our first data show, structural knowledge of protein-lipid
interactions for membrane proteins is critical for understanding the structure and function of membrane
proteins. This approach has the potential to revolutionize the area of membrane protein research and
have a significant impact on membrane protein structure-based medication discovery and development.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10645526
- **Project number:** 3R01GM132329-04S1
- **Recipient organization:** VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Youzhong Guo
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $236,127
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-07-01 → 2024-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10645526

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10645526, Proposal for an Administrative Supplement  for Equipment Purchases for NIGMS Awardees NOT-GM-22-017 (3R01GM132329-04S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10645526. Licensed CC0.

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