Determination of High-Resolution Structures 
for the Post-Genomic Age
Warsaw and Poznań, Poland
June 3-17, 2001					   Application Deadline: March 1, 2001

With funding from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the U.S. National Research Council is sponsoring an intensive lab course for researchers from Central/Eastern Europe and the Newly Independent States.  The first part of the course, devoted to macromolecular nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), will be held at the Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics in Warsaw, and the second part, concerned with macromolecular X-ray crystallography, at the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry in Poznań.  Due to the intensive nature of the program, classes will be conducted Monday through Saturday each week.  Students will therefore need to arrive in Warsaw on Sunday, June 3, and depart from Poznań on Sunday, June 17, 2001.

Course Description

The aim of the course is to familiarize the students with modern methods of macromolecular structure determination, including both X-ray crystallography and NMR spectroscopy. The course will have theoretical as well as practical components. As listed below, some of the theoretical lectures will be common to both parts of the course, while others will relate specifically to crystallography or NMR.  The practical aspects of the course will involve actual crystallographic and NMR experiments, with opportunities for the participants’ own projects.

Common Topics

•	Principles of protein structure
•	Principles of nucleic acid structure
•	Structure interpretation and comparisons
•	Recent examples illustrating the two methods and 
literature-based overviews of the most topical current structures

NMR

•	Isotopic labeling and sample preparation
•	Principles of heteronuclear NMR of proteins and RNA
•	Multi-dimensional data collection
•	Multi-dimensional data processing
•	Data analysis: resonance assignment and NOE assignments
•	Residual dipolar coupling
•	Ambiguous restraints
•	Structure calculation and refinement
•	Dynamics: data collection and analyses
•	Perspective on new technical developments
•	Overview of common software for NMR

X-ray crystallography

•	Crystallization of macromolecules
•	Principles of X-ray diffraction
•	Data collection using area detectors
•	Data collection using synchrotron radiation (theory only)
•	Data processing and analysis
•	Patterson maps and their interpretation
•	Phasing approaches: MIR, SIR, MAD, MR
•	Phase improvement
•	Electron density maps and their interpretation
•	Structure refinement
•	Overview of the most common program suites for crystallography
•	Validation of atomic models

Course Co-Directors:  Dr. Alexander Wlodawer, Associate Director, Program in Structural Biology, and Chief, Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory, National Cancer Institute-Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center; Dr. R. Andrew Byrd, Chief, Structural Biophysics Laboratory, and Chief, Macromolecular NMR Section, National Cancer Institute-Frederick Cancer Research and Development Center.

Host Co-Organizers:  Prof. Mariusz Jaskólski, Head, Center for Biocrystallographic Research, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences (Poznań); Prof. Andrzej Rabczenko, Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences (Warsaw)

Instructors:  The list of guest instructors and lecturers from the United States and Europe has not yet been finalized but will be posted at http://www.nationalacademies.org/oia when available, along with a complete course agenda.

Who Should Apply
The course is designed for scientists in the early stage of their careers who have the PhD or equivalent (kandidat), some background in molecular biology and/or biochemistry, and limited experience with structural methods.  Highly qualified senior level graduate students who have not yet completed the PhD may apply provided they have the required background.  English language proficiency is also required, as the course will be conducted only in English.  Applicants must be citizens of one of the following countries:  Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia-Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

How to Apply
Applicants should submit the following items: (1) a letter describing his/her education and research experience and explaining how the course would be relevant to his/her future scientific work; (2) a CV, including a list of publications; (3) a letter of recommendation from a supervisor or academic adviser familiar with his/her background and professional accomplishments (please note that the person writing the recommendation should submit this item directly to the email or mailing address indicated below); (4) an estimate of the cost of return train or air fare between his/her home city and Warsaw, Poland.

All application materials must be received by MARCH 1, 2001, preferably by e-mail to krobbins@nas.edu.  If e-mail is not available, applications may be mailed to Kelly Robbins, Senior Program Officer, National Research Council, Office of International Affairs (FO 2060), 2101 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20418.  Inquiries regarding application details may be sent to the same e-mail address or by fax to 202-334-2614.

Approximately 20 students will be selected for participation, and all applicants will be notified regarding the outcome of their proposals by mid-March 2001.

Financial Aspects
Tuition and all course materials are free of charge.  In addition, students will receive round-trip transportation by rail or air as appropriate between their home cities and Warsaw, as well as round-trip rail transportation between Warsaw and Poznań.  Hotel accommodations, meals, and a small stipend for incidentals will be provided.  For students requiring visas, support letters will be provided by the Polish hosts and any costs incurred in obtaining the visas will be reimbursed to students at the course site.