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Foldit: Playing a Game While Solving Protein Structures

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Summary

Areas of Science
Difficulty
 
Time Required
Long (2-4 weeks)
Prerequisites
Understanding of what proteins are.
Material Availability
Readily available
Cost
Very Low (under $20)
Safety
No issues
Credits

Teisha Rowland, PhD, Science Buddies

*Note: For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.

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Abstract

Unlocking the three-dimensional structure of a protein is crucial to help scientists understand how it functions in our bodies and how it can cause devastating diseases if it becomes disrupted or interacts in the wrong way. However, figuring out the structure of a protein in three-dimensional space can be very challenging. Proteins are the functional units of our cells, and every protein is made up of a long chain of amino acids. Amino acids come in different shapes and sizes, and they have different electrical charges. All of these aspects affect how the amino acids interact with each other. These many intricate interactions determine the structure of the overall protein. Consequently, although scientists may know the amino acid sequence of a certain protein, it takes a lot more work to figure out how this chain of amino acids comes together to form the three-dimensional shape of the protein itself, which is called the tertiary structure of the protein.

Figuring out the tertiary structure of a protein is often done using powerful computer programs, such as Foldit. In Foldit, an interactive computer game, users can investigate how the amino acids in a protein prefer to interact with each other, and the space around them, in specific ways that lead to an overall stable protein structure. Users compete with each other to create the most stable tertiary structures for a given protein, or the best "solution." In this way, in September of 2011 users of Foldit were actually able to solve the structure of an enzyme critical for causing AIDS, specifically an enzyme that is important for the maturation and proliferating of the virus. Enzymes like this one are the focus for anti-viral drug efforts. Users solved the enzyme's structure within three weeks, while it had puzzled scientists for a decade. You can read more about this discovery in the citation below. Hopefully Foldit users will continue to help with medical breakthroughs along these lines.

So what makes one "solution" better than another "solution"? In this science project, you will investigate how one proposed tertiary structure for a protein is more or less stable than another proposed tertiary structure. For this science project, after downloading the Foldit game and creating a user account, we recommend that you complete all, or at least most, of the 32 "Intro Puzzles." This will give you a good idea of the strategy used to solve more complex puzzles. You can then explore the "Science Puzzles" and "Contests" (Note: You need to manually download the latter inside the game).

For the "Science Puzzles" for which the protein structure is known, try to match your solution to the "Guide" (the known protein structure). For the harder "Science Puzzles" and all of the "Contests," you can join a Foldit Group to share "Solutions" with other people. Anyone can make a group, or you can ask to join a group on the in-game chat. You could even look online for the solved structure of a similar protein, such as by searching the RCSB Protein Data Bank. When solving protein structures and comparing solutions, think about the following:

Even if you're new to Foldit, by thinking about these questions and having some patience you'll be folding proteins like a pro in no time!

Bibliography

To do this science project, you will need to download the Foldit program, which you can find here:

  • Foldit: Solve Puzzles for Science. (n.d.). Foldit. Retrieved September 28, 2011.

Here are a few websites that will help you start gathering information about Foldit, how to use it to solve protein structures, and more on protein structures:

Here you can read about the recent medical breakthrough of solving an HIV enzyme structure using Foldit:

Explore More!

Interested in the science behind viral outbreaks? Check out Coronavirus.

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Ask an Expert

Do you have specific questions about your science project? Our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.

Global Connections

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

This project explores topics key to Good Health and Well-Being: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

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Cite This Page

General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "Foldit: Playing a Game While Solving Protein Structures." Science Buddies, 11 Sep. 2020, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/BioMed_p008/medical-biotechnology/foldit-playing-a-game-while-solving-protein-structures. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2020, September 11). Foldit: Playing a Game While Solving Protein Structures. Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/BioMed_p008/medical-biotechnology/foldit-playing-a-game-while-solving-protein-structures


Last edit date: 2020-09-11
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