Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 4, 2026

Investigating Protein Sequence-structure-dynamics Relationships with Bio3D-web
Published on: July 16, 2017
Normal mode analysis of proteins: a comparison of rigid cluster modes with C(alpha) coarse graining
Adam D Schuyler1, Gregory S Chirikjian
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.
Abstract:
The ability to infer dynamic motions from an equilibrium (static) conformation of a protein can be essential in establishing structure-function relationships. In particular, the low-frequency motions are of functional interest because statistical mechanics predicts these motions will have the largest amplitudes. In this paper, we address the computational cost of normal mode analysis (NMA) applied to a C(alpha)-based elastic network model (C(alpha)-NMA) and present a new coarse-grained rigid-body-based analysis (cluster-NMA). This new method represents a protein as a collection of rigid bodies interconnected with harmonic potentials. This representation produces reduced degree-of-freedom (DOF) equations of motion (EOMs) which, even in the case of large structures (10(3+) residues), enables the computation of normal modes to be done on a desktop PC. We present the complete theory and analysis of cluster-NMA and also include its application to a variety of structures. The results of the new method are compared with C(alpha)-NMA and it is shown that cluster-NMA produces very good approximations to the lowest modes at a fraction of the computational cost.
More Related Videos
10:27Contrast-Matching Detergent in Small-Angle Neutron Scattering Experiments for Membrane Protein Structural Analysis and Ab Initio Modeling
Published on: October 21, 2018
07:11Fully Autonomous Characterization and Data Collection from Crystals of Biological Macromolecules
Published on: March 22, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Protein Folding
Molecular Models
Globular and Fibrous Proteins
Globular proteins are also known as spheroproteins and typically are approximately round in shape. They contain a mix of amino acid types and contain differing sequences in their primary structures. Globular proteins have many different functions, such as enzymes, cellular messengers, and molecular transporters. These roles often require the proteins to be...
¹H NMR of Conformationally Flexible Molecules: Temporal Resolution
Protein Folding
Protein Structure Is Critical to Its Biological Function
Proteins perform a wide range of biological functions such as catalyzing chemical reactions, providing...
Globular and Fibrous Proteins
Globular proteins are also known as spheroproteins and typically are approximately round in shape. They contain a mix of amino acid types and contain differing sequences in their primary structures. Globular proteins have many different functions, such as enzymes, cellular messengers, and molecular transporters. These roles often require the proteins to be...