Mature Synchotron Resource
NE-CAT is an x-ray crystallographic research facility designed to address the most demanding and complex diffraction problems in structural biology. As a Mature Synchrotron Resource for Structural Biology, we offer biomedical researchers state-of-the-art X-ray beamlines, hands-on user support, and expert training to generate and analyze structural biology data. Our operation is driven by the requirements of our user community.
Beamtime is available on a first-come, first-serve basis to anyone with an active General User Proposal and to our member institutions.
What’s New
From fresh results to facility updates, keep up with everything happening at the beamlines.
A Collaborative Approach to Beamline Development
In June, the staff at NE-CAT began working on a prototype software stack for controlling data collection on 24-ID-C. Led by Graeme Winter, we each tackled one aspect of the hardware control necessary to launch data collection. We've implemented new EPICS-based communication for the detector distance, attenuator insertion, and guillotine control. We also coded a prototype API for interfacing between the MD3 microdiffractometer, the EIGER2 detector and a beamline user GUI. On July 29, we tested the ability of our software to collect a dataset at 500 Hz.
Selective sabotage: How macrolide antibiotics jam the ribosome, but only for certain proteins
In the arms race that is the life of bacteria, crafty microbial combatants have developed chemical weaponry that targets the cellular machinery of their enemies and kills them. For the last 100 years, scientists have studied various strains of bacteria to identify and isolate these antibiotic chemicals to be used as treatments for our own bacterial infections.
Changes Coming to C Line
24-ID-C is equipped with a DECTRIS EIGER2 X 16M which was given an XE upgrade in 2025. The EIGER2 was commissioned on 24-ID-C in 2020, coming into service as the COVID-19 pandemic caused a nationwide lockdown. The XE upgrade improves the maximum frame rate of the detector from 140 Hz to 560 Hz or 1.7 milliseconds per exposure. Currently installed is an MD3 microdiffractometer from Arinax. The MD3 arrived at NE-CAT prior to the APS-U with the intention of replacing the aging MD2 microdiffractometers on both beamlines. Also installed is a modified Berkeley Automounter with a storage dewar that can hold 30 pucks.
Scientists hypothesize new mechanism for destroying cancer-causing protein
RAS proteins function as on/off switches in pathways controlling cell growth and proliferation. Mutated RASs keep the pathways permanently activated, leading to conditions such as cancer and Noonan syndrome. A protein called Leucine Zipper-like Transcription Regulator 1 (LZTR1) regulates cellular levels of RAS by promoting RAS’s destruction. However, LTZR1 is itself prone to mutations, disrupting its ability to bind and degrade RAS and causing diseases such as Noonan syndrome and Schwannomatosis.
Graeme Winter, New Deputy Director
Coming from Diamond Light Source, where he served as a Principal Scientist and Team Leader, Graeme brings a wealth of experience in synchrotron X-ray sources, crystallographic software development, and automation. We are happy to welcome him into the position of Deputy Director.
NAS Award in Molecular Biology recognizes work on innate immunity
The lab of Philip Kranzusch, Professor of Microbiology at Harvard Medical School and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, regularly uses beamtime at NE-CAT to examine the question of innate immunity.
Science
Publications which used NE-CAT or the NE-CAT BAG at NSLS-II.
Upcoming Workshops
Learn the principles of macromolecular x-ray crystallography from data collection to structure solution from leaders in the field.
The DIALS software package (Diffraction Integration for Advanced Light Sources) is used throughout the world for processing crystallographic data in automated pipelines or through graphical user interfaces. In conjunction with the Bay Area Light Sources Joint Users' Meeting (September 20-25, 2026), this full-day workshop will teach users and beamline scientists how to use DIALS to [...]
Members
The Northeastern Collaborative Access Team (NE-CAT) facility at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory is managed by Cornell University and consists of eight member institutions:
- Columbia University
- Cornell University
- Genentech
- Harvard University
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
- Rockefeller University
- Yale University
