COMMISSION ON BIOPHYSICAL CHEMISTRY (I.7)
Number: 170/8/94
Title: Recommendations for the Measurement and
for the Presentation of Results obtained on Biological Substances
with Scanning Calorimetry
Coordinator(s): F.
Schwarz and H.-J.
Hinz
Remarks: Joint project with Commission I.2
Completion Date: 2001- project completed
Objective:
Scanning calorimetry is being widely used for the study of the thermodynamic
stability of proteins. From a single experiment it is possible to
determine the transition temperature, the calorimetric enthalpy, the
heat-capacity change, and the cooperativity and stoichiometry of the
transition. Because of this, scanning calorimetry has evolved into
the primary scientific tool for studying the thermodynamic stability
of proteins and other macromolecules. A somewhat unfortunate diversity
of the way results are calculated and reported has also accompanied
the use of this technique. In some cases the published results do
not contain all of the information that would give a study its optimal
scientific value. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a
set of recommendations for the measurement and for the presentation
of the results obtained on biological substances with scanning calorimetry.
In this project a group of international experts will address these
matters. They will develop a consensus on the information from these
experiments that should be reported in the literature and on the terminology
and formats to be used. A set of recommendations will be prepared
that will serve as a guide to workers in this field of research.
Progress:
A third draft of these recommendations was discussed in detail at
the GA in Geneva. Based on this discusssion the coordinators will
write the first draft of the final document by the end of 1997.
Project completed - IUPAC Technical Report published
in Pure
Appl. Chem.,
73(4), pp. 745-759, 2001.
Last Update: 17 July 2001