Proteins top-down: a statistical mechanics approach

Biopolymers have many fascinating properties coming from a competition betw een universal features, well known in the physics of synthetic polymers, an d specific elements which are crucial for the biological function of these molecules. Proteins are an example of this richness: proteins are heteropol ymers consisting of hydrophobic and hydrophilic segments, and carry charges of both signs along the backbone. Simple models of such heteropolymers hav e been studied in connection with the folding and evolution of proteins. Ho wever, these models can only give a limited understanding of real proteins, and elements specific to proteins must be included. Our approach to this p roblem has been to construct a model of the specific self-interactions of p roteins by defining a unique folding pathway. This model reproduces the the rmodynamic properties of proteins. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All right s reserved.