Ion channels: structural bioinformatics and modelling

Molecular modelling and bioinformatics

Small model systems Our group has a long trajectory in the study of small model systems of biological relevance, such as nucleobase complexes, drugs, isolated complexes of amino acids, and stacked or hydrogen-bonded complexes. The study of these simple systems can shed light on the behaviour of much more complex biological molecules. Almost a decade ago, we recognised that these studies were si...

A Software Tool for Modelling and Simulation of Ion Channels

Background: Ion channels are proteins in the cell membrane that facilitate the diffusion of selected ions through biological membranes. Measuring ionic current has been made possible using the giga-seal patchclamp technique [13]. Modelling and simulation provide a better understanding that complements experimental results. Several tools are available. New modelling standards based on markup lan...

Bioinformatics III: Structural Bioinformatics and Genome Analysis

Structural bioinformatics

Motivation: Protein-protein complexes are known to play key roles in many cellular processes. However, they are often not accessible to experimental study because of their low stability and difficulty to produce the proteins and assemble them in native conformation. Thus, docking algorithms have been developed to provide an in silico approach of the problem. A protein-protein docking procedure ...

O 13: Ion Channels in Autoimmune Neurodegeneration

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system characterized by widespread inflammation, focal demyelination and a variable degree of axonal and neuronal loss. Ionic conductances regulate T cell activation as well as neuronal function and thus have been found to play a crucial role in MS pathogenesis. Since present therapeutical approaches are only parti...