Secondary Structure Analysis (SSE) Software for Infrared Interpretation and Modeling of Proteins

As the last strands of the human genome project unravel, the focus now turns to proteomics. There are several instrumental methods to analyze protein chemistry and there is particular interest in the functional activity that can be directly attributed to the physical arrangement of a protein. As opposed to simple chemicals, the 3-dimensional structure of proteins is an inherent part of the protein reactivity and functionality. For instance, muscle fiber is composed primarily of a single type of protein (fibrinogen) with a specific physical structure. In other proteins, rearrangement of the physical configuration can enhance or restrict the protein functionality or reactivity. Thus, the physical arrangement of the protein is as important as the sequence of amino acids. NMR analysis requires very expensive instrumentation. By contrast, FT-IR analysis is readily available in most laboratories, has few constraints on sample type or methodology, is inexpensive and simple to operate. As a result, the study and interpretation of infrared protein spectra has been well documented in the literature1