Online carbohydrate 3D structure validation with the Privateer web app.

Area of Science:

• Structural Biology
• Computational Chemistry
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Carbohydrate 3D structure validation is crucial for the Protein Data Bank deposition pipeline due to inherent complexities.
• The Privateer software offers integrated methods for analyzing, refining, and visualizing glycan 3D atomic structures, including ligands and protein modifiers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present the Privateer web application, an accessible online version of the Privateer software.
• To enable structural biologists to analyze carbohydrate ligands and protein glycosylation efficiently and securely via a web browser.

Main Methods:

• Development of a web application interface for the existing Privateer software.
• Ensuring the web app runs locally on the user's machine for data confidentiality.
• Implementing a self-updating mechanism for the web application.

Main Results:

• The Privateer web app is available online without requiring installation.
• The tool allows for quick and simple analysis of carbohydrate ligands and protein glycosylation.
• User data remains confidential as the analysis runs locally.

Conclusions:

• The Privateer web app provides a user-friendly, accessible, and secure platform for glycan structure analysis.
• This tool streamlines the structural biology workflow by removing installation barriers and ensuring data privacy.