title: Protein function machinery: from basic structural units to modulation of activity.
abstract: Contemporary protein structure is a result of the trade off between the laws of physics and the evolutionary selection. The polymer nature of proteins played a decisive role in establishing the basic structural and functional units of soluble proteins. We discuss how these elementary building blocks work in the hierarchy of protein domain structure, co-translational folding, as well as in enzymatic activity and molecular interactions. Next, we consider modulators of the protein function, such as intermolecular interactions, disorder-to-order transitions, and allosteric signaling, acting via interference with the protein's structural dynamics. We also discuss the post-translational modifications, which is a complementary intricate mechanism evolved for regulation of protein functions and interactions. In conclusion, we assess an anticipated contribution of discussed topics to the future advancements in the field.
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 30 Biopolis Street, #07-01, Matrix, Singapore 138671, Singapore; Department of Biological Sciences (DBS), National University of Singapore (NUS), 8 Medical Drive, Singapore 117579, Singapore. Electronic address: igorb@bii.a-star.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Igor N
authors.initials: IN
authors.lastname: Berezovsky
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 30 Biopolis Street, #07-01, Matrix, Singapore 138671, Singapore.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Guarnera
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 30 Biopolis Street, #07-01, Matrix, Singapore 138671, Singapore.
authors.forename: Zejun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 30 Biopolis Street, #07-01, Matrix, Singapore 138671, Singapore.
authors.forename: Birgit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Eisenhaber
authors.affiliation: Bioinformatics Institute (BII), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 30 Biopolis Street, #07-01, Matrix, Singapore 138671, Singapore; School of Computer Engineering (SCE), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), 50 Nanyang Drive, Singapore 637553, Singapore.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Eisenhaber
mesh_terms: D000494:Allosteric Regulation; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins