Analyzing and modelling thermodynamics; the key to lectin engineering
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2009 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | Cukrblik 2009 |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Biochemistry |
| Keywords | lectins; docking; computational chemistry; thermodynamics |
| Description | Thermodynamics is a basic driving force of all chemical processes, including those in the biomolecular chemistry. Not a single process can disobey its fundamental rules. The lectin-saccharide interaction is no exception, and as such, the understanding of the principles determining its behaviour greatly helps to elucidate the rules of the lectin-saccharide mediated processes in the nature, and, of course, also the ways of modifying them in the desired ways. Characterizing the thermodynamic behaviour of the molecules is nowadays a quite achievable feat, thanks to development on the instrumental field. Isothermal titration calorimeters requiring only small amounts of protein to provide thermodynamics information and coupled with surface plasmon resonance, a potent mean of kinetics analysis, obtaining a detailed image of the interaction becomes quite easily available. Moreover, the current computational capacity allows to perform sophisticated simulations and modelling of the biomolecular interactions. |
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