Meeting reports

On 17 July 2024 the School of Life Sciences at the University of Bedfordshire hosted 22 participants from the UK, Italy, Sweden and South Africa, for this year’s Protein Purification and Biophysical Characterization 2-day training event. This is the third time this event has run. This year’s event included networking bingo and training in the use of the Constant Systems CF1 cell disrupter, the Cytiva AKTA Start protein purification system, the NanoTemper Monolith for dissociation constant determination and the Beckman analytical ultracentrifuge (AUC) for determining protein size and shape. Short theory and applications lectures were provided by industry and academic experts before participants were let loose on the instruments. Training activities involved lysis of Escherichia coli expressing the recombinant fat depleting protein zinc α2 glycoprotein (ZAG), ZAG purification, determination of binding affinities for two ZAG : ligand interactions and the analysis of ZAG size and shape in the presence and absence of ligand. Networking continued on day 1 during dinner at Pizza Express with drinks kindly provided by Constant Systems. Photos of each activity are highlighted below together with a group photo. Overall participants gained a much-appreciated introduction to the basics of protein-based studies, thanks to our sponsor CliniSciences.■