Mass Spectrometry meets Structural Biology:
Decoding the Composition of Bio-Molecular Machines
60-minute recording of my PhD Thesis Defense
Tune in to an exploration of the relationship between a protein’s atomic composition and its structure.
Amino acids are molecules that come together to form poly-peptides, called proteins.
A protein’s atomic composition (i.e., its amino acid sequence) determines its 3D-architecture.
After a protein is expressed, the base amino acid sequence becomes modified through the addition or removal of atoms.
These “sequence events” are not predicted in the Genome.
The precise atomic state of a protein is called a “Proteoform.”
We can detect Proteoforms directly by Mass Spectrometry.
Virtual Reality
Many of our data types are digital.
Using the game engine Unity, I uploaded my molecules into the Microsoft HoloLens for a virtual reality exhibit about DNA packing.
Arranged in a circle around the viewer, floating in the air, each virtual “sculpture” represents a stage in the packaging of DNA into higher-order chromatin structures.
1) Molecular monomer; 2) 8 individual histones and 2 DNA strands; 3) a nucleosome core particle; 4) six nucleosomes stacking on one another; 5) early stages of chromatin fiber formation as nucleosomes pack together; 6) larger chromatin fiber; 7) a chromosome, highest-order and macroscopic arrangement of DNA.
Scan the QR code with your phone to visualize the pMMO structure as Augmented Reality.
You will be prompted to download Adobe Aero (a free app) to activate the experience. Once downloaded, follow the on-screen instructions.
At the moment, the Augmented Reality experience is only accessible through iPhone.