Membrane simulations: bigger and better?

• Published in: Current Opinion in Structural Biology Vol. 10; no. 2; pp. 174 - 181
• Main Authors: Forrest, Lucy R, Sansom, Mark SP
• Format: Book Review Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2000
• Subjects: 1,2-Dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine - chemistry; Alpha helix; Bacterial Proteins - chemistry; Cholesterol - chemistry; Computer Simulation; Dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine - chemistry; Ion channel; Lipid bilayers; Lipid Bilayers - chemistry; Membrane Lipids - chemistry; Membrane Proteins - chemistry; Membranes; Models, Chemical; Models, Molecular; Molecular dynamics; Peptides - chemistry; Phospholipids - chemistry; Porins - chemistry; Potassium Channels - chemistry; Protein Conformation; Protein Structure, Secondary; Protein Structure, Tertiary; Simulation; Membranes; Simulation; Alpha helix; Molecular dynamics; Biophysics; Ion channel; Structural biology; Lipid bilayers
• ISSN: 0959-440X; 1879-033X
• DOI: 10.1016/S0959-440X(00)00066-X

Molecular dynamics simulations of biological membranes have come of age. Simulations of pure lipid bilayers are extending our understanding of both optimal simulation procedures and the detailed structural dynamics of lipids in these systems. Simulation methods established using simple bilayer-embedded peptides are being extended to a wide range of membrane proteins and membrane protein models, and are beginning to reveal some of the complexities of membrane protein structural dynamics and their relationship to biological function.