Keep on moving: discovering and perturbing the conformational dynamics of enzymes.

ABSTRACT: CONSPECTUS: Because living organisms are in constant motion, the word "dynamics" can hold many meanings to biologists. Here we focus specifically on the conformational changes that occur in proteins and how studying these protein dynamics may provide insights into enzymatic catalysis. Advances in integrating techniques such as X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance, and electron cryomicroscopy (cryo EM) allow us to model the dominant structures and exchange rates for many proteins and protein complexes. For proteins amenable to atomic resolution techniques, the major questions shift from simply describing the motions to discovering their role in function. Concurrently, there is an increasing need for using perturbations to test predictive models of dynamics-function relationship

SUBMITTER: Bhabha G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4334266 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature