Understanding Protein Structural Alignment and Its Variability
Author Information
Author(s): Pirovano Walter, Feenstra K Anton, Heringa Jaap
Primary Institution: Centre for Integrative Bioinformatics VU (IBIVU), VU University Amsterdam
Hypothesis
How does structural diversity impact protein structural alignment?
Conclusion
Structural variation significantly affects structural alignment, highlighting the need for better methods to visualize and interpret alignment inconsistencies.
Supporting Evidence
- Structural diversity has a significant effect on structural alignment.
- Alignment inconsistencies can arise even with modest spatial divergence.
- A new online database was developed to visualize alignment inconsistencies.
Takeaway
This study shows that even tiny changes in protein structure can lead to big differences in how we align them, which is important for understanding their functions.
Methodology
The study used alternative protein crystal structures and molecular dynamics simulations to analyze the effects of structural diversity on alignments.
Limitations
The study does not address the performance comparison of various structural alignment methods.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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