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Lecture 11A
Protein structure prediction

Foundations

Date: Mar 25, 2025

This foundational lecture introduces students to the concept and significance of protein structure prediction. Students will explore why predicting protein structures from sequences is essential, identify key challenges, and understand major computational strategies such as homology modeling, threading, contact maps, and machine learning approaches, including AlphaFold.

Learning objectives

After today, you should have a better understanding of:

  1. The significance and challenges of protein structure prediction.
  2. Principles behind homology modeling and threading.
  3. The concept and interpretation of contact maps.
  4. How coevolutionary signals inform structural predictions.
  5. Why machine learning is transformative in structure prediction.

Supplementary material

Relevant content and readings for today's lecture.

Presentation