Importance of collision cross section measurements by ion mobility-mass spectrometry in structural biology

Abstract

The field of ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IM-MS) has developed rapidly in recent decades, with new fundamental advances underpinning innovative applications. This has been particularly noticeable in the field of biomacromolecular structure determination and structural biology, with pioneering studies revealing new structural insight for complex protein assemblies which control biological function. This perspective article offers a review of recent developments in IM-MS which have enabled expanding applications in protein structural biology, principally focussing on the quantitative measurement of collision cross sections and their interpretation to describe higher order protein structures.