A new algorithm to predict the dynamic language of proteins
The predicted profile for the conformational dynamics of the tyrosine kinase family is shown. Regions highlighted in red correspond to important structural elements involved in protein activation. Researchers from the Structural Biology Computational Group of the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO), led by Alfonso Valencia, in collaboration with a group headed by Francesco Gervasio at the University College London (UK), have developed the first computational method based on evolutionary principles to predict protein dynamics, which explains the changes in the shape or dimensional structure that they experience in order to interact with other compounds or speed up chemical reactions. The study constitutes a major step forward in the computational study of protein dynamics (i.e. their movement), which is crucial for the design of drugs and for the research on genetic diseases, such as cancer, resulting in higher levels of complexity than allowed by current methods. The results have...