Some of us spend enough time playing with computer. This coupled with the human ability to solve puzzles could be used to help science: on the website fold.it , protein folding has become a game in which the highest score for the state of lowest protein energy. The player who finds the structure that is closer to its optimal structure of the protein takes the most points and win well. Since there are many who are playing, and all of them now are co-authors of a recent publication in the journal Nature describing the scientific game online Foldit.
Proteins are biomolecules that sustain life functioning of all organisms. Enzymes and hormones, for example, belong to the group of proteins. Hemoglobin, the blood that carries oxygen is too, such as collagen. The function of a protein in a body as our body depends on its shape and structure. This structure is usually quite complicated and difficult to predict. But without knowing the structure, one can not know how the biomolecule. Hence the interest in solving the structure of a protein. Learn how to predict a structure, for example, may be useful in the development and synthesis of new drugs.
In recent years, the use of computers has become very popular for studying protein structure. Given to a program based on a structure of a protein and it tries, based on various chemical and physical rules, search for other structures better. It is a slow process and does not always give satisfactory results. Alternatively, a group of molecular biologists take advantage of our affinity for the game and our ability to solve puzzles. Foldit In the game, the player is confronted with the structure of a protein and have to find another better structure. Bending, folding, twisting, and other movements through parts of the molecule are obtained several protein structures of different energies. The highest score corresponds to the best structure, ie the lowest energy.
turns out that in many cases the structures found players better than computer programs. Sometimes, to reach a new lower energy structure, must pass through structures with very high energies. For a human player does not mean no problem if he thinks that the structure where you want to reach will have a lower energy than the first. These types of software, on the other hand, are not scheduled to undergo high-energy structures. This will not make any major changes in the structure and thus find the optimal structure.
Foldit is a prototype of how to use the tremendous capacity Science and human progress. Besides scientist at universities and other research institutions, forming a kind of scientific citizen, the amateur interested in contributing what they can. Playful, yet learning, supports and contributes to the research process. They conclude: "Our results indicate that scientific progress is possible if you can channel, even a small fraction of the energy spent playing computer games to scientific discoveries."
Proteins are biomolecules that sustain life functioning of all organisms. Enzymes and hormones, for example, belong to the group of proteins. Hemoglobin, the blood that carries oxygen is too, such as collagen. The function of a protein in a body as our body depends on its shape and structure. This structure is usually quite complicated and difficult to predict. But without knowing the structure, one can not know how the biomolecule. Hence the interest in solving the structure of a protein. Learn how to predict a structure, for example, may be useful in the development and synthesis of new drugs.
In recent years, the use of computers has become very popular for studying protein structure. Given to a program based on a structure of a protein and it tries, based on various chemical and physical rules, search for other structures better. It is a slow process and does not always give satisfactory results. Alternatively, a group of molecular biologists take advantage of our affinity for the game and our ability to solve puzzles. Foldit In the game, the player is confronted with the structure of a protein and have to find another better structure. Bending, folding, twisting, and other movements through parts of the molecule are obtained several protein structures of different energies. The highest score corresponds to the best structure, ie the lowest energy.
turns out that in many cases the structures found players better than computer programs. Sometimes, to reach a new lower energy structure, must pass through structures with very high energies. For a human player does not mean no problem if he thinks that the structure where you want to reach will have a lower energy than the first. These types of software, on the other hand, are not scheduled to undergo high-energy structures. This will not make any major changes in the structure and thus find the optimal structure.
Foldit is a prototype of how to use the tremendous capacity Science and human progress. Besides scientist at universities and other research institutions, forming a kind of scientific citizen, the amateur interested in contributing what they can. Playful, yet learning, supports and contributes to the research process. They conclude: "Our results indicate that scientific progress is possible if you can channel, even a small fraction of the energy spent playing computer games to scientific discoveries."
Cooper S, Khatib F, Treuille A, Barber J, Lee J, Beenen M, Leaver-Fay A, Baker D, Popović Z, & Players F (2010). Predicting Protein Structures with a multiplayer online game. Nature, 466 (7307), 756-60 PMID: 20686574
0 comments:
Post a Comment