Identifying the motility of atoms in biological and chemical systems may help decipher the shell structure that protects the genetic material of certain viruses, which may, in the future, impair their reproduction.
Viruses are made up of a pool of biological molecules that include a genetic material (DNA or RNA), which is wrapped in a protein shell that protects it. Viruses cannot reproduce on their own. For this they need a host cell (of humans / animals / plants / bacteria). In order to reproduce, the virus enters the host cell, incorporating the viral genetic material into it – and thus, in effect, forcing the cell to replicate more and more viruses. In this process, the viruses can also cause diseases.
Prof. Amir Goldburt of the School of Chemistry at Tel Aviv University and his team are developing nuclear magnetic resonance methods (NMR) to study biological and chemical systems, such as viruses and protein molecules. The structures of chemical and biological systems in atomic separation (resolution). That is, through them it is possible to know where each atom is located in the system and what its chemical environment is.
What is the question? How can the motility of the atoms that hold the genetic material of viruses be quickly deciphered?
Prof. Goldburt and his team focus on the study of bacteriophages – viruses that attack bacteria, the most common and ancient in nature among the variety of viruses we know today. Bacteriophages inject bacteria into their genetic material, multiply within them – and then break out, sometimes destroying the bacterial cell.
If we understand the structure of bacteriophages, we may be able to help develop substances that will damage the protein coat of many different types of viruses, or the process by which they carry out the infection.
The bacteria that have been attacked and not harmed by this continue to replicate the genetic material that has infiltrated their cells and thus help in the production of new viruses. Says Prof. Goldburt: “We are researching the structure of bacteriophages as part of a field called structural virology. We focus mainly on the way the protein shell of viruses is built at the atomic level (where each atom is located), and how it holds and protects the genetic material until release. .
The proteinaceous envelope of viruses is made up of thousands of atoms, and their constant displacement affects their strength and grip on the genetic material. Therefore, in their research – which received a research grant from the National Science Foundation, the researchers are interested in deciphering the average position of the atoms at different times and the motility (dynamics) of each of them. The aim of their latest study was to find out the motility of the atoms in as short a time as possible (to try to streamline future dealing with viruses). To this end, doctoral student Tom Aharoni developed software that analyzes data from experiments using a magnetic resonance method, within a few seconds. The researchers enter into it the protein shell data of the virus and the NMR spectrum (a kind of topographic map with varying intensities). These data are obtained from atoms of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen, from which the amino acids that make up the shell proteins are made. The software scans these frequencies and thus analyzes the structure of the atoms and maps the motility of each of them. The results are obtained in output within a few seconds of entering the data. Having the shape of a flexible fiber).
“This is software that can be used to quickly detect the motility of atoms in almost any protein system, as well as in biological and chemical systems,” says Prof. Goldburt. “It is also very accessible: it can be downloaded from our site and used easily. This is how we hope it will be possible to decipher structures of viruses and other disease agents.”
Life itself:
Prof. Amir Goldburt, 51, married with two children (21, 18), lives in Rosh HaAyin. He loves running, long nature walks, and music (“from classical to country and rock”).
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