Atomic motions in phenylalanine transfer RNA probed by molecular dynamics simulations

A 24 psec molecular dynamics simulation of tRNAPhe reveals a very stable model whose average structure is close to that of the crystallographic studies. The root mean square atomic motions correlate very well with the thermal factors from crystallography and are largely determined by packing forces. These motions are generally more anisotropic than those seen in a molecular dynamics simulation of a globular protein, and the anisotropic effects are also primarily a consequence of packing considerations. The development and examination of molecular dynamics models for macromolecules is an interesting basic research problem in biophysical chemistry, and it is now reasonably well advanced. The more exciting tasks of using these models to predict experimental properties and to examine biological function are just beginning.