Rules and regulations

There are three types of users with different access rights to the instruments of cOpenNMR facility - Full support, minimal support, do-it-yourself. All users will start out on ‘full support’ and can be upgraded at the discretion of the NMR manager. At least one teaching session is mandatory and can be agreed on with the NMR-manager. Direct access to the instrument can be granted in special instances after consultation of the staff of cOpenNMR.

•  Full support – Users new to NMR spectroscopy

The samples will be handled by the staff of cOpenNMR or under supervision. All data acquisition and processing will be done together with or by the staff of cOpenNMR and there is assistance available for data analysis. Booking of the instruments is possible for all open timeslots and users can select from a set of standard 1D and 2D experiments with fixed experiment times (more sophisticated experiments are possible after consultation of the staff of cOpenNMR). 

•  Minimal support – Users familiar with NMR data acquisition/processing and data analysis

Data acquisition and processing is done under assistance of the staff of cOpenNMR. Data analysis and interpretation is the sole responsibility of the user. The starting time of the booking must be in the core working hours (9:00-17:00) and users can select from a set of standard 1D and 2D experiments with fixed experiment times (more sophisticated experiments are possible after consultation of the staff of cOpenNMR). 

•  Do it yourself – For expert users fully familiar with the principles of NMR spectroscopy and experimental competence in the Topspin3® and Topspin4® software packages

The sample will be placed in the sample exchanger by the staff of cOpenNMR and the user is notified about the position. All subsequent steps of data acquisition and analysis will be performed by the user independently. NMR time can be booked hourly without specification of the measured experiments. The full functionality of the Topspin software will be accessible and all available pulse sequences can be chosen. Implementation of new experiments or changes to the standard settings of the experiments regarding pulse shapes, length and duration, however, may only be performed after consultation of the staff of cOpenNMR.

• Sample information

Potential or known risks for health associated with the samples, as well as the information dealing with special storage and sample manipulation must be provided upon sample submission. This information should be provided upon booking and filling out the online analysis request form. Along with the sample information, the experiments to be run must be detailed.

• Sample requirements

To avoid sample damaging or loss, it is recommended to provide samples properly labelled and protected. The selected Id code of each sample (which must match with the one in the online analysis request form) must appear clear, visible and indelible on the sample container. Samples should be provided as dry solid/liquid or dissolved in an appropriate deuterated solvent (D₂O, 90%H₂O+10%D₂O, d₆DMSO, dChloroform or d₄Methanol). The final sample volume should be no less than 600 uL and the samples will be transferred to 5 mm NMR tubes (Bruker Labscape Z172600) by the staff of cOpenNMR and positioned in the cooled autosampler until usage. In case of limited sample availability - especially in the case of biomolecules - different sample tubes are available (5 mm Shigemi tubes/300 uL Sample volume, 3 mm tubes/180 uL Sample volume, 3 mm Shigemi tubes/90 uL Sample volume).

• Sample delivery

The Samples should be delivered in person (Mo-Fr, 9:00-17:00) or by mail to the cOpenNMR facility located at:

Structural Biology and NMR Laboratory (SBiN-Lab)

Section for Biomolecular Sciences

Department of Biology

Copenhagen Biocenter
University of Copenhagen
Ole Maaloes Vej 5, room 3-0-42
DK-2200 Copenhagen N
Denmark

• Sample return

Once the experiments are concluded, users are advised to collect their samples. The cOpenNMR facility reserves the right to dispose unclaimed samples within one month after the delivery of the results. In this case, waste management could be charged to the user.

If one day of measurement time or less is needed, the online booking system will be available for accepted users, but booking must be done at least 5 days in advance.

If more then one day of consecutive spectrometer time is needed, this can not be booked in the automatic booking system. Instead, the exact date and timing of the experiment should be organized together with the staff of cOpenNMR, after filling out of the online form, or by directly contacting the NMR-manager (andreas.prestel@bio.ku.dk).

The full support includes the following and can be done either exclusively by the staff of cOpenNMR or by the User under supervision of the staff:

1. Sample preparation: Addition of the required amount of the deuterated solvent and a reference compound (if requested). Transfer of the NMR sample to the NMR-tube with a glass or plastic pipette and transport to the spectrometer.
2. Recording of the ordered spectra on the specified instrument.
3. Processing of the spectra with Topspin (multiplication with a squared sine window-function, Fourier transformation, baseline correction using a polynomial function, 0 and 1st order phase correction).
4. Data analysis (Peak picking and integration, extraction of coupling constants)
5. Summary of the results in a report, including the raw data, peak lists and integrals as well as figures of the processed spectra.
6. After delivery of the report, the data will be stored for 1 week on a non public drive before it will be deleted, unless additional analysis is requested by the User.

Further analysis like a full assignment of the spectra to a molecular structure, determination of relaxation rates, determination of diffusion coefficients and other might be available upon negotiation with the staff of cOpenNMR depending on the project and the available capacities.