EAGER: Pilot Studies for Representing and Archiving Integrative Structural Models of Macromolecular Machines and Supporting Data

新技术已经出现，可以确定非常大的大分子组件的三维结构。这些较大的生物系统在基础分子生物学、光合作用、纳米技术和健康方面发挥着关键作用。这些分子机器的三维结构不是依靠单一的技术，而是通过使用计算方法整合许多不同种类的实验结果来确定的。为了使这些综合或混合模型能够支持广大科学家群体的未来研究，并为开发新的教育平台提供支持，开发一种将这些数据存档并使其易于访问的方法至关重要。实现这一目标需要采取几个步骤。目前大分子结构的存档依赖于原子的固定空间位置；因此，这些模型的现有表示必须扩展到包括非原子模型和时空模型。将开发一种新的基础设施，允许不同的实验存储库联合起来，托管有助于这些集成模型的数据集。一旦这个基础设施被开发出来，就有必要建立一个系统的原型，用于存储和归档这些新的综合模型和支持数据。

New techniques have emerged that allow the determination of the three dimensional structures of very large macromolecular assemblies. These larger biological systems play key roles in basic molecular biology, photosynthesis, nanotechnology, and health. Rather than relying on a single technique, the three dimensional structures of these molecular machines are being determined by integrating results from many different kinds of experiments using computational methods. In order to allow these integrative, or hybrid, models to enable future research by the broad community of scientists and also provide for the development of new educational platforms, it is essential to develop a way to archive these data and make them easily accessible. Several steps are necessary to achieve this goal. Current archiving of macromolecular structures depends on the fixed spatial positions of atoms; therefore the existing representation of these models must be extended to include both non-atomistic and spatio-temporal models. A new infrastructure will be developed that allows for the federation of different experimental repositories hosting data sets contributing to these integrative models. Once this infrastructure is developed, it will be necessary to prototype a system for depositing and archiving these new integrative models and supporting data.