Related papers: Dihedral-angle Gaussian distribution driving prote…
Using an off-lattice model, we fully enumerate folded conformations of polypeptide chains of up to N = 19 monomers. Structures are found to differ markedly in designability, defined as the number of sequences with that structure as a unique…
The native state structures of globular proteins are stable and well-packed indicating that self-interactions are favored over protein-solvent interactions under folding conditions. We use this as a guiding principle to derive the geometry…
The viscosity dependence of the folding rates for four sequences (the native state of three sequences is a beta-sheet, while the fourth forms an alpha-helix) is calculated for off-lattice models of proteins. Assuming that the dynamics is…
Two proteins, one belonging to the mainly alpha class and the other belonging to the alpha/beta class, are selected to test a kinetic mechanism for protein folding. Targeted molecular dynamics is applied to generate folding pathways for…
Novel numerical techniques, validated by an analysis of barnase and chymotrypsin inhibitor, are used to elucidate the paramount role played by the geometry of the protein backbone in steering the folding to the correct native state. It is…
$\alpha$-helices stand out as common and relatively invariant secondary structural elements of proteins. However, $\alpha$-helices are not rigid bodies and their deformations can be significant in protein function ({\it e.g.} coiled coils).…
Globular proteins are expected to assume folds with fixed secondary structures, alpha-helices and beta-sheets. Fold-switching proteins challenge this expectation by remodeling their secondary and/or tertiary structures in response to…
We present a statistical mechanics approach to the protein folding problem. We first review some of the basic properties of proteins, and introduce some physical models to describe their thermodynamics. These models rely on a random…
The conformational complexity of linear polymers far exceeds that of point-like atoms and molecules. Polymers can bend, twist, even become knotted. Thus they may also display a much richer phase structure than point particles. But it is not…
A generalized computational method for folding proteins with a fully transferable potential and geometrically realistic all-atom model is presented and tested on seven different helix bundle proteins. The protocol, which includes…
Proteins play a critical role in carrying out biological functions, and their 3D structures are essential in determining their functions. Accurately predicting the conformation of protein side-chains given their backbones is important for…
In a similar way in which the folding of single--domain proteins provide an important test in the study of self--organization, the folding of homodimers constitute a basic challenge in the quest for the mechanisms which are at the basis of…
The sequence of a protein is not only constrained by its physical and biochemical properties under current selection, but also by features of its past evolutionary history. Understanding the extent and the form that these evolutionary…
We solve a model that takes into account entropic barriers, frustration, and the organization of a protein-like molecule. For a chain of size $M$, there is an effective folding transition to an ordered structure. Without frustration, this…
Recently, we presented a framework for understanding protein structure based on the idea that simple constructs of holding hands or touching of objects can be used to rationalize the common characteristics of globular proteins. We developed…
Focusing on a small set of proteins that i) fold in a concerted, all-or-none fashion and ii) do not contain knots or slipknots, we show that the Gauss linking integral, the torsion and the number of sequence-distant contacts provide…
We present a model, based on symmetry and geometry, for proteins. Using elementary ideas from mathematics and physics, we derive the geometries of discrete helices and sheets. We postulate a compatible solvent-mediated emergent pairwise…
Repeat proteins are made with tandem copies of similar amino acid stretches that fold into elongated architectures. Due to their symmetry, these proteins constitute excellent model systems to investigate how evolution relates to structure,…
Natural protein sequences that self-assemble to form globular structures are compact with high packing densities in the folded states. It is known that proteins unfold upon addition of denaturants, adopting random coil structures. The…
The use of reduced models for investigating the self-assembly dynamics underlying protein shell formation in spherical viruses is described. The spontaneous self-assembly of these polyhedral, supramolecular structures, in which icosahedral…