Real Time Conformational Analysis of Rhodopsin using Plasmon Waveguide Resonance Spectroscopy Testing

Rhodopsin is a G-protein coupled receptor responsible for sight. It represents the primary interface between light and the subsequent impulse delivered to the occipital region of the brain. The process of sight occurs via a conformational change of rhodopsin as a result of its interaction with light. Recently it has been shown that prolonged exposure to microgravity environments impairs the vision of astronauts. This proposal aims to answer two questions: 1) Whether there is an acute change in the structure of the receptor itself upon exposure to microgravity; and 2) Whether microgravity affects the subsequent dynamic conformational changes after rhodopsin is exposed to light. The technique that will answer these questions is called plasmon waveguide spectroscopy, which has proven itself effective not only in the evaluation of rhodopsin but in ligand interactions with a wide variety of G-protein coupled receptors.

Developing Plasmon Waveguide Resonance (PWR) technology and protocols will allow for the collection of pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic data in micro-gravity, benefitting future NASA missions.

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