AI reveals how toughest protein bonds behave– cosmosmagazine.com Source Link Excerpt:
Proteins can form “catch-bonds” that tighten under force, much like a finger trap. Credit: Rafael C. Bernardi, Auburn Physics
Researchers have used artificial intelligence to help uncover how certain protein interactions act like a finger trap, gripping tighter the harder they are pulled.
These interactions, known as catch-bonds, are essential in how the body holds together under stress and how bacteria attach to cells.
The researchers suggest that a better understanding of these bonds could help inform the design of new medications and biomaterials.
Scientists have been unsure as to whether these catch-bonds activate straight away or if they need to be stretched to a certain threshold before they ‘switch on’.
The new study discovered that these bonds activate almost immediately after a force is applied.
