Some of the most interesting CASP11 targets through the eyes of their authors

Area of Science:

• Structural biology
• Biophysics
• Computational biology

Background:

• The Critical Assessment of protein Structure Prediction (CASP) is a community effort crucial for advancing protein structure prediction.
• CASP relies on experimentally determined protein structures provided as targets by the structural biology community.
• CASP11 specifically utilized targets from crystallographers, highlighting the collaboration between experimental and computational fields.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the functional and biological significance of protein targets used in CASP11.
• To identify and discuss unique structural features of these target proteins.
• To assess the accuracy of protein structure predictions submitted to CASP11 concerning these features.

Main Methods:

• Selection of crystallographers who provided targets for CASP11.
• Discussion of the biological and functional roles of selected target proteins.
• Analysis of the structural characteristics of target proteins.
• Comparison of predicted structures with experimental data for CASP11 targets.

Main Results:

• Crystallographers provided insights into the biological relevance of CASP11 targets.
• Key structural features of target proteins were highlighted.
• An assessment was made on how well CASP11 predictions captured these structural and functional aspects.

Conclusions:

• The experimental structural biology community is vital for the success of CASP.
• Understanding the biological significance and structural nuances of prediction targets is essential for evaluating prediction accuracy.
• The review provides valuable feedback for improving protein structure prediction methodologies.