Question: what do you do after you have made the 3D models of proteins

Sam Horrell answered on 17 Jun 2013:

Hi Christopher,

Once we have a 3D model there are a couple of things we can do. Probably the most common this is to try and find how either a small molecule like a drug binds or how one proteins interacts with another.

For the drug we would take the crystals we’ve grown and add some of the drug to it by a process called soaking. Then we fire X-rays at it and hope that the drug has bound. This could show us a change in the structure or block off a site where another molecule might interact.

For protein protein interactions there are a lot of software programs that perform something called docking. This predicts how one protein will bind to another based on its shape and chemical properties.

It may be that you are combining these 2 to stop one protein interacting with the other. The important thing to remember is that by knowing the structure of a protein we get an idea of its function. If we know what the protein does we can try and alter its activities to suit out needs.