The separation and identification of proteins that can be used as disease markers is an exciting area of research - VCE - SSCE Chemistry - Question 20 - 2009 - Paper 1
Question 20
The separation and identification of proteins that can be used as disease markers is an exciting area of research. Researchers must separate and identify proteins th... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:The separation and identification of proteins that can be used as disease markers is an exciting area of research - VCE - SSCE Chemistry - Question 20 - 2009 - Paper 1
Step 1
i. separate these molecules
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Answer
To effectively separate proteins from a complex mixture, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is often used due to its efficiency in separating different components based on their interactions with the stationary and mobile phases.
Step 2
ii. accurately determine their molecular mass
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Following separation, mass spectrometry is a powerful technique used to accurately determine the molecular mass of the proteins. It ionizes chemical species and sorts the ions based on their mass-to-charge ratio.
Step 3
iii. determine their molecular structure
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Finally, to determine the molecular structure of the proteins, techniques such as NMR spectroscopy can be employed, which provides detailed information about the structure, dynamics, and environment of molecules.
