{
  "abstract": "Protein function depends on their conformational flexibility. Complementary to temperature-dependent studies, high-pressure (HP) macromolecular crystallography is well suited to exploring the conformational space of proteins at atomic resolution. We have developed a new HP cell concept for macromolecular X-ray crystallography that overcomes the limitations of current devices. It consists of a single-crystalline sapphire capillary, which is loaded with multiple crystals and pressurized with helium at freely adjustable gas pressures of up to 120 MPa. Studying five different proteins, we generally observed a compression of the protein structures and a decrease in thermal displacement parameters at high pressure. Structurally, observations included the compression of a central tunnel of a biotechnologically relevant enzyme and the stabilization of ligand binding in the membrane protein photosynthetic reaction center of Cereibacter sphaeroides . For two pharmaceutically relevant proteins, the human kinase DRAK2 and SARS-CoV-2 main protease, we identified concerted movements of subdomains. Such knowledge is essential for predictions of protein dynamics and defined conformational states, offering the potential for improved structure-based drug development.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 21,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Julia Lieske",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5439-5082"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sofiane Saouane",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7260-9021"
    },
    {
      "name": "Patrick Y. A. Reinke"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sven Falke",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3409-1791"
    },
    {
      "name": "Wiebke Ewert",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8626-4864"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jan Meyer",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6498-9976"
    },
    {
      "name": "Tim Pakendorf"
    },
    {
      "name": "Anja Burkhardt",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7161-9001"
    },
    {
      "name": "Eva Crosas"
    },
    {
      "name": "Johanna Hakanpää"
    },
    {
      "name": "Karolina Stachnik"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jochen Sieg"
    },
    {
      "name": "Matthias Rarey"
    },
    {
      "name": "Miriam Aßmann"
    },
    {
      "name": "Henning Zaun"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jürgen Kuballa"
    },
    {
      "name": "Georgii K. Selikhanov",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9861-6118"
    },
    {
      "name": "Azat G. Gabdulkhakov",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-1016-5936"
    },
    {
      "name": "Henry N. Chapman",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4655-1743"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sebastian Günther",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7329-6653"
    },
    {
      "name": "Alke Meents",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6078-4095"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/evdrxsar7bps9.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1107/s2052252526008468",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "evdrxsar7bps9",
  "issns": [
    "2052-2525"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://journals.iucr.org/paper?S2052252526008468",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2505|Enzyme Structure and Function"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7222927985",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-19",
  "publisher": "International Union of Crystallography (IUCr)",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/evdrxsar7bps9.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:18:54Z",
      "native_id": "10.1107/s2052252526008468",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://journals.iucr.org/paper?S2052252526008468"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "openalex:2505|Enzyme Structure and Function",
      "subfield": "materials-polymers"
    }
  ],
  "title": "High-pressure macromolecular crystallography as a tool for studying protein flexibility",
  "title_text": "High-pressure macromolecular crystallography as a tool for studying protein flexibility",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:18:54Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/evdrxsar7bps9",
  "venue": "IUCrJ",
  "versions": []
}