Kinetics of Biologically Significant Large Ligand Interactions

提出了一系列涉及生物聚合物与小分子以及与其他生物聚合物相互作用的具有生物学意义的现象的模拟研究。将研究分子与由一维晶格表示的长生物聚合物结合的系统。具体如下：a.)将审查多个极大值(生物密度)对与晶格结合的配体数量的概率分布的影响；b)更早的方法，将晶格视为均质的，带有关于晶格上单体序列的信息将被扩充；将寻求更适合于异质晶格的新近似技术；以及d.探索一种新的、简单的离子在多离子膜通道中的传输模型。在考虑生物聚合物链之间的聚集时，例如将研究生物聚合物聚集形成簇的过程的动力学和结构方面；f.)将开发研究线性聚集现象动力学的方法，重点是微管蛋白聚合形成微管；以及将寻求设计扰乱聚集过程的分子的方法。生物大分子与小分子以及与其他生物聚合物的相互作用在生物系统的正常(和不正常)过程中一直存在。了解这些相互作用对于了解生物系统的功能是至关重要的。//

A series of modeling studies of a variety of biologically significant phenomena involving the interactions of biopolymers with smaller molecules and with other biopolymers is proposed. Systems in which molecules bind to a long biopolymer represented by a one-dimensional lattice will be studied. Specifically: a.) The effects of multiple maxima (biomodality) in the probability distribution of the number of ligands bound to the lattice will be examined; b.) earlier methods, which take the lattice to be homogenous, with information about the sequence of monomers along the lattice will be augmented; c.) new approximation techniques more appropriate to heterogenous lattices will be sought; and d.) a new, simple model for ion transport through multi-ion membrane channels will be explored. In considering the aggregation of biopolymer chains with one another, e.) both the kinetic and the structural aspects of the process by which biopolymers aggregate to form clusters will be investigated; f.) methods for studying the kinetics of linear aggregation phenomena with emphasis on the polymerization of tubulin to form microtubules will be developed; and g.) approaches to designing molecules that disrupt the aggregation process will be sought. The interaction of biological macromolecules with smaller molecules and with other biopolymers is an ever present occurrence in the normal (and abnormal) processes of biological systems. An understanding of these interactions is essential for an understanding of the functioning of biological systems. //