Structural Biology
Characterization of Protein Structures
Structural biology is the study of the structure of biological molecules, such as proteins.
What are proteins and why their structure is important?
Proteins are macromolecules formed by several amino acids in a chain. Despite being a chain, they can adopt different shapes/structures that will impact on the protein biological function.
Structural biology is a field widely used in academia and pharmaceutical industries. It makes possible for scientists to investigate:
- the atomic arrangement of the amino acids;
- the relationship of structure and function;
- how ligands interact with the proteins and the conformational changes;
- how to improve drug design.
Methods
The most common methods for characterizing protein structures are:
Click on the images to learn more about them.📖