Exploring folding pathways of single proteins using mechanical manipulation

Pétur Orri Heiðarsson, Ciro Cecconi

Abstract

Protein folding is still a major area of active research. Despite significant progress in understanding the underlying principles, we still cannot efficiently predict the folding mechanism for even a moderately sized protein. Proteins are generally thought to fold by diffusion over a three-dimensional energy landscape. Traditional bulk methods have proven to be very powerful in the study of the folding process but they often suffer from inherent ensemble averaging. Single molecule techniques open up new vistas for studying protein folding, allowing direct analysis of the distribution of events that characterize the heterogeneous folding process. Recently it has become possible to directly manipulate individual proteins using optical tweezers. Here we illustrate the experimental strategy and how this approach has provided a fresh perspective on the protein folding problem.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationTheory and applications in computational chemistry : the first decade of the second millennium
Editors Enrico Clementi, Jean-Marie André, J. Andrew McCammon
Number of pages6
PublisherAmerican Institute of Physics
Publication date2012
Pages201-206
ISBN (Print) 978-0-7354-1057-2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2012
EventInternational Congress TACC-2012 - Pavia, Italy
Duration: 2 Sept 20127 Sept 2012

Conference

ConferenceInternational Congress TACC-2012
Country/TerritoryItaly
CityPavia
Period02/09/201207/09/2012
SeriesA I P Conference Proceedings
Volume1456
ISSN1551-7616

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