Skip to main content

Research Facilities

Northwestern researchers have access to cutting-edge instruments housed in the following facilities staffed with PhD-level managers who provide training and advice to student users.  The instruments are continually updated and enhanced by faculty preceptors and staff members of these facilities.

IBiS student Ryan Marcum uses an NMR instrument in Northwestern's IMSERC facility.

Keck Biophysics Facility
The facility features over two dozen instruments for studies of macromolecular structure and function. A full-time staff trains users and maintains the facility.

Advanced Photon Source
A premier X-ray resource for high-resolution macromolecular structure determination. Northwestern structural biologists have access to the DND-CAT and LS-CAT beamlines.

Biological NMR Center
The facility features a state-of-the-art 600 MHz NMR instrument for studies of macromolecular structure and dynamics in solution.

Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center (IMSERC)
The facility features multiple analytical instrumentation including mass, optical and atomic absorption spectrometers, and NMR and X-ray resources for small molecule analysis.

The High Throughput Analysis Laboratory (HTA)
The facility provides robotic instrumentation and expertise for the development and execution of high throughput biological analysis as well as chemical and biological library screening.

UIC Center for Structural Biology
A super high field resource for solution NMR spectroscopy. Northwestern structural biologists have access to 800 and 900 MHz instruments.

Chicago Biomedical Consortium Resources
The Chicago Biomedical Consortium supports a variety of proteomics and computational resources in research institutions in the Chicago area.

Structural Biology Facility
The Structural Biology Facility is essential for the research programs of investigators who are studying the relationship between macromolecular structure and function or who are using protein structure as the starting point for structure-based drug design.

CryoEM Facility
The major focus of the facility will be on providing extensive 1:1 training to potential users, and to provide support ranging from specimen development, specimen preparation, and imaging to computational image analysis, and structure determination.