Protein Conformation

Contributors from the fields of X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, molecular modelling and protein engineering provide insight into the amino acid sequence of proteins in this volume, which highlights areas of future research.

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Protein Conformation Chairman: F.M. Richards 1991 One of the major unsolved problems in biology and chemistry is how the amino acid sequence of a protein determines its three-dimensional structure, yet this structure is fundamental to the functioning and mechanism of action of enzymes, channels and receptors. Since the pioneering modelling work of Pauling in the 1940s and the X-ray structure determinations by Kendrew and Perutz in the 1960s, much structural information on proteins has been amassed. Several hundred protein structures have now been solved by X-ray crystallography and, more recently, NMR spectroscopy has had a significant impact on the study of structures of small proteins in solution. In this book, contributions from experts in the fields of X-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, molecular modelling and protein engineering provide insight into current views on the protein folding problem and point to avenues for future progress. The use of molecular dynamics simulations to provide information about protein structure, dynamics and stability, and about protein - protein interactions, is discussed.
Other topics focused on include enzyme catalysis, site-directed mutagenesis as a tool in studies of protein conformation and stability, and recent developments in multidimensional NMR methodology. Related Ciba Foundation Symposia No 159 Catalytic antibodies Chairman: W.P. Jencks 1991 ISBN 0 471 92962 X No 158 Host-guest molecular interactions: from chemistry to biology Chairman: I.O. Sutherland 1991 ISBN 0 471 92958 1 No 145 Carbohydrate recognition in cellular function Chairman: E. Ruoslahti 1989 ISBN 0 471 92307 9 No 119 Synthetic peptides as antigens Chairman: G.L. Ada 1986 ISBN 0 471 99838 9