Doubly sensitivity-enhanced 3D TOCSY-HSQC.

Recently, strategies for double sensitivity enhancement in heteronuclear three-dimensional NMR experiments were introduced (Krishnamurthy, V.V. (1995) J. Magn. Reson., B106, 170-177; Sattler et al. (1995) J. Biomol. NMR, 6, 11-22; Sattler et al. (1995) J. Magn. Reson., B108, 235-242). Since a sensitivity enhancement of a factor 2(1/2) can be achieved for each indirect dimension, nD spectra can theoretically be enhanced up to a factor of 2(((n-1)/2)). We propose and analyze a doubly enhanced three-dimensional TOCSY-HSQC sequence. The application of the doubly enhanced three-dimensional {(15)N, (1)H} TOCSY-HSQC sequence is shown for uniformly (13)C-/(15)N- and (15)N-labeled samples of the relatively large Azotobacter vinelandii flavodoxin II (179 amino acids). The main factors that contribute to the final signal-to-noise enhancement have been systematically investigated. The sensitivity enhancement obtained for the doubly enhanced TOCSY-HSQC pulse sequence as compared to the standard (unenhanced) version is close to the theoretically expected factor of two.