An idea to explore: Use of the virtual reality app Nanome for teaching three-dimensional biomolecular structures

Biochemistry and molecular biology students are asked to understand and analyze the structures of small molecules and complex three-dimensional (3D) macromolecules. However, most tools to help students learn molecular visualization skills are limited to two-dimensional (2D) images on screens and in textbooks. The virtual reality (VR) App Nanome, designed for collaborative drug discovery, allows users to visualize, build, modify, and interact with molecules in 3D. Here, we describe our pedagogical approach for using Nanome to teach biomolecular structure concepts in the classroom. After introducing students to the Meta Quest VR hardware and training students to use Nanome using its built-in tutorials, we used Nanome to review molecular structure. We provide five detailed Nanome exercises that address a variety of key learning objectives in biochemistry and molecular biology including reviewing protein structure (secondary, tertiary, and quaternary), properties of active sites, chirality of amino acids, and ligand-enzyme interactions. The exercises we designed include built-in assessment to monitor student learning in Nanome. In addition, we supply instructor resources for starting with Nanome and implementing the exercises. After the VR exercises, we used surveys to assess student impressions. All students reported that the activities were somewhat or very helpful in learning about molecular structure. Most students (85%) reported that the activities increased or moderately increased their interest in biomolecular structures. We also discuss student perceptions of the technology and the advantages and challenges they cited to using VR to review biomolecular structure.