Molecular Aspects of Biotechnology

A fundamental question is asked concerning the sophistication of the model utilized to capture the main features of biomolecules and biochemical processes. In this text, a group of specialists in molecular biotechnology aim to provide an answer to this question.

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Although biotechnology emerged from the genetic engineering revolution of the 1970s, the knowledge of the structure of genes revealed its molecular aspects. Molecular biotechnology is a multidisciplinary domain of research in which experiments, simulations and theories interact. At present, the huge increase in computer power allows one to carry out numerical simulations of biochemical systems. However, a fundamental question appears concerning the sophistication of the model utilized to capture the main features of biomolecules and biochemical processes. In this text, a group of specialists in molecular biotechnology aim to provide an answer to this question. This book should be useful for researchers who wish to know the state-of-the-art in this domain. It spans the range from molecular conformations through protein folding and form chemical reactivity through enzymatic action. Furthermore, it formulates recommendations for future research in molecular biotechnology.