Biological Chemistry
Description
Biological chemistry at Penn encompasses modern experimental and theoretical techniques to study the structure, physical properties, and function of biologically-important molecules such as proteins, nucleic acids, and membranes. Experimental techniques for the determination of macromolecular structure include x-ray diffraction, x-ray and neutron scattering, NMR spectroscopy, and static and time-resolved measurements of electronic and vibrational spectra. These techniques complement protein biochemistry and enzymology to study the chemistry of molecular stability and function. Proteins are isolated from natural sources but are more typically realized and manipulated using recombinant DNA technology, peptide synthesis and/or modern molecular biology techniques. Many biomolecular efforts are guided by theory, simulation, and other computational methods.
Schematic structure of CR3 region of the human papillomavirus E7
oncoprotein homodimer, where the two protomers are colored in blue and green.
Bound zinc atoms are colored in red. Marmorstein Group
