CSC

	Tehdyt toimenpiteet Åbo Akademi The Structural Bioinformatics Laboratory Group leader: Tiina Salminen and Mark Johnson Home page: http://www.abo.fi/fak/mnf/bkf/research/johnson/ The Structural Bioinformatics Laboratory (SBL) consists of two research groups, that of Mark Johnson and Tiina Salminen, located at the Department of Biochemistry and Pharmacy at Åbo Akademi University. We have nearly 20 researchers and staff. Our research is in the field of structural biology, mainly involving proteins - the molecules encoded by genes. Our research is multidisciplinary and made in close cooperation with experimental groups since our research approaches are focuses on computer-based molecular modeling and experimental structure determination using x-ray crystallography. The latter approach requires extensive computational support in order to solve molecular structures. Furthermore, we have an extensive program whereby we analyze the experimental structures deposited within the protein data bank, as well as the development of our own software for molecular visualization and manipulation. Our collaborative research projects consider a wide range of proteins and their interactions with other molecules. Cell-surface receptors, signalling proteins within the cell and nucleus; proteins within plants, other animals, but mainly human and having importance for health. Our collaborative partners provide experimental data and test our computationally assisted hypotheses. We, in turn, provide molecular interpretations for their experimental results. The unit has a 32-processor Intel-based server for parallel applications, ~30 other computers, 3 terabytes of disk space, gigabit networking is partially in place, and access to all major commercial and public domain data bases and software needed for structure based modeling. We belong to several of the software and database consortia organized by CSC. In addition to basic research, teaching remains a major part of our activities. We train M.Sc. and Ph.D. students in structural biology, computer-based methods, etc. We teach courses at all levels, providing all students within the department, those belonging to the Health Bioscience degree program, and some students from the University of Turku with a base level of computer literacy. We provide introductory and advanced courses in molecular modeling, bioinformatics, and computer-based drug discovery. Back to the group list