Overview

Scientists are trying to understand how living things develop into 3-D shapes. After all, a DNA blueprint codes for making straight lines of amino acids that build into proteins, but there are no molds to turn the amino acids into proteins. How then does biological material turn into the complicated forms we know, -- blood cells, fingernails, eyelashes, flagella? Think about the vast array of biological creations!

Some answers are beginning to emerge - partly because the tools for "seeing" into structues are becoming so powerful, partly because there is a revolution going on in nanotechnology, in which machines are being made smaller and smaller until they are literally out of sight, even smaller than a miniature computer chip. Thinking about small machines in general helps us discover them in the living world, and even build them, too.

In order to understand how special structures in the human world and in the world of living beings are built for special functions, we will first consider the meaning of structure and function. Then we will review critical aspects of macromolecules necessary for understanding the way structure and function are related at the molecular level.

Finally we will explore three stories about how protein structures are important for the work they do. Each story is linked to a tale of disease, one cause by a slight change in the shape of a critical molecule. Along the way you will find hands-on experiments to do, and interesting web sites to visit.

As a postscript we will travel to the frontier, where scientist are trying to understand what molecular machines do, and to design new small molecules for important jobs.

Enter the Structure and Function Exlploration

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