Combining Computational And Experimental Approaches To Characterize Ion Channels And Transporters

Electrical signals in living cells arise from ion channels, which cause rapid changes of the membrane potential by the selective passage of certain ions across the membrane, and transporters, which generate ion gradients on a slower time scale and thus provide the energetic basis for the passive ion flux through channels. Ion channels and transporters are expressed in almost every living cell and fulfil a plethora of distinct cellular functions. An increasing number of human diseases are caused by dysfunctional ion channels or transporters makes these proteins important targets for pharmaceutical interventions. Understanding the structural dynamics of ion channels and transporters at atomic resolution will provide new insight into their function and represents an important step towards designing blockers or activators to specifically modulate their function as therapeutic option in diseases.

Calcium signaling contains a unique selection of chapters that cover a wide range of contemporary topics in this ubiquitous and diverse system of cell signaling. This book has the flavor of a primary text book, but it is much more than that. It covers topics ranging from the fundamental aspects of calcium signaling to its clinical implications, in a thoughtful and comprehensive way. It discusses cutting edge researches, and critical issues at depth, and it presents many testable hypotheses for future research. It includes the theoretical and the methodological topics as well as topics related to mathematical modeling, and simulations. If you want to read about calcium signaling in different mammalian cells, oocytes, Zebrafishes, and even in plants, in one and the same book, then this book will not disappoint you. From the beginners to the experts in the field of calcium signaling, everybody will find something useful in this very timely book.

The worlds most comprehensive and up-to-date collection of Nanotechnology and Nanoscience technical papers. Technical Proceedings of the Nanotech 2002 and the International Conference on Computational Nanoscience and Nanotechnology. Nanotech Vol. 1: Sequence and Biological Structure, Computer Aided Drug Design, Biological Conduction Processes, Biotechnology, Micro and Nano Fluidic Systems, Soft Condensed Matter, Extedned-Scale Atomistics, Quantum Effects, Quantum Devices, Spintronics, Mechanical Properties at the Nanoscale, Molecular and Nano Electronics, Condensed Matter Phenomena, Process Modeling, Nanotechnology, Materials and Nanostructures Studies, Nano Particles and Molecules. Papers taken from the 2002 Nanotechnology Conference and Trade Show, San Juan, Puerto Rico, April. 2002.

Exploring current themes in modern computational and membrane protein biophysics, this book presents a comprehensive account of the fundamental principles underlying different methods and techniques used to describe the intriguing mechanisms by which membrane proteins function. The book discusses the experimental approaches employed to study these proteins, with chapters reviewing recent crucial structural advances that have allowed computational biophysicists to discern how these molecular machines work. The book then explores what computational methods are available to researchers and what these have taught us about three key families of membrane proteins: ion channels, transporters and receptors. The book is ideal for researchers in computational chemistry and computational biophysics.

Mechanisms of Taste Transduction introduces a number of topics essential to a complete understanding of taste. These topics range from the control of food intake to the biophysical mechanisms of transduction and the design of food flavors in the food industry. The responses and organization of special sensory pathways are described in regard to the

This open access volume compiles student reports from the 2023 Simula Summer School in Computational Physiology. The reports provide an overview of some tools available to model physiology in excitable tissues across scales and scientific questions. In 2023, Simula held the ninth annual Summer School in Computational Physiology in collaboration with the University of Oslo (UiO) and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). Each year, the course focuses on modeling excitable tissues, with a special interest in cardiac physiology and neuroscience. Group research projects conducted by graduate students from around the world result in reports addressing problems of physiological importance. Reports may not necessarily represent new scientific results; rather, they can reproduce or supplement earlier studies. Reports from seven of the summer projects are included as separate chapters. The topics represented include multiscale mechanics, electrophysiology, pharmacology, and machine learning. This is an open access book.