Question 1

What is the Meaning of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) is an optical phenomenon detecting real-time changes in refractive index at a metal-dielectric interface, typically a thin gold film, when molecules bind to its surface. This label-free technology provides direct data on molecular interactions, including association and dissociation kinetics, without requiring fluorescent or radioactive tags.

Question 2

What is the Context of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

Within biological research and clinical diagnostics, SPR serves as a crucial tool for understanding biomolecule binding dynamics. It is extensively utilized in studying hormone-receptor interactions, antibody-antigen binding, protein-ligand associations, and DNA hybridization. This technique operates at a molecular level, offering insights into the precise affinity and specificity of biological recognition events.

Question 3

What is the Significance of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

SPR offers valuable insights into how drugs interact with targets, how hormones bind to receptors, and how immune responses are generated. This information is vital for drug discovery, biomarker identification, and diagnostic assay development. Precise kinetic data from SPR helps researchers comprehend disease mechanisms and optimize therapeutic strategies, directly impacting patient care.

Question 4

What is the Mechanism of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

The principle of SPR involves directing polarized light at a specific angle onto a metal film, usually gold, coated on a prism. At a particular angle, known as the SPR angle, photons interact with free electrons in the metal, generating surface plasmons. When a biomolecule binds to a ligand immobilized on the metal surface, it changes the local refractive index, shifting the SPR angle. This shift in reflected light intensity directly correlates to the mass bound.

Question 5

What is the Application of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

In clinical and research laboratories, SPR is applied to characterize small molecule binding to proteins, determine antibody specificity for diagnostic assays, and analyze protein-protein interactions relevant to disease pathways. It is commonly used in pharmaceutical development to screen potential drug candidates and in academic research to elucidate fundamental biological processes. This technique facilitates rapid assessment of molecular binding.

Question 6

What is the Metric of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

The primary metric measured in SPR experiments is the "response unit" (RU), which correlates directly to the mass of molecules bound to the sensor surface. Kinetic parameters such as the association rate constant (ka), dissociation rate constant (kd), and equilibrium dissociation constant (KD) are derived from real-time binding curves. These values quantify the strength and speed of molecular interactions, providing precise data for biochemical and clinical studies.

Question 7

What is the Risk of Surface Plasmon Resonance?

Accepted Answer

While SPR is a powerful analytical technique, its interpretation requires expertise to avoid mischaracterization of binding events. Factors such as non-specific binding, mass transport limitations, and improper surface chemistry can lead to inaccurate kinetic data. These potential pitfalls necessitate careful experimental design, rigorous controls, and proper data analysis. Misinterpretation of SPR data could mislead research or drug development efforts.

Surface Plasmon Resonance

Meaning

Context

Significance

Mechanism

Application

Metric

Risk

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