# Structural Transitions in Proteins and Protein Assemblies

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA · 2020 · $296,096

## Abstract

Structural Transitions in Proteins and Protein Assemblies
Project Summary/Abstract
A detailed knowledge of the relation between chemical composition and structure/function of proteins
is crucial for an understanding of disease pathways and the working of drugs at the level of cells. De-
spite decades of research, both experimental and computational, this relationship is still only partially
understood. In the present project, we develop advanced computational methodologies to investigate
structural changes that are difficult to probe in experiments, but are important because they change
the function of proteins, or the toxicity of protein aggregates. These techniques are tested and opti-
mized in studies of two proteins, RfaH-CTD and lymphotactin, that change their function by switching
between two different structures. While focusing on simple model systems, the gained insight may
guide therapeutic applications, for instance, the design of components that stabilize a certain confor-
mation. In a second set of simulations we extend our techniques and concepts to the oligomerization
of amyloid-forming A -peptides, implicated in Alzheimer's disease. Combining our computational
studies with experimental investigations by the Rangachari Lab at University of Southern Mississippi,
we will study the transition between toxic and non-toxic (or less toxic) aggregates, and why some
amyloids can seed their own growth by converting other forms. Understanding this process may in
turn lead to the development of drugs that modulate the spread of such “infectious strains”.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10001539
- **Project number:** 5R01GM120634-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
- **Principal Investigator:** ULRICH H.E. HANSMANN
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $296,096
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-15 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10001539

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10001539, Structural Transitions in Proteins and Protein Assemblies (5R01GM120634-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10001539. Licensed CC0.

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