Reconstructing biological molecules with help from video gamers

Foldit is a citizen science video game in which players tackle a variety of complex biochemistry puzzles. Here, we describe a new series of puzzles in which Foldit players improve the accuracy of models in the public repository of experimental protein structure models, the Protein Data Bank (PDB). Analyzing the results of these puzzles showed that the Foldit players were able to considerably improve the deposited structures. We describe a mechanism by which the efforts of the Foldit players can be fed back into the structural biology scientific record by using Foldit results as improved input for the PDB-REDO databank. These efforts highlight the continued need for the engagement of the lay population in science.