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by Wayne Decatur
The 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for studies of the ribosome. The ribosome is the machine in your cells that accurately and efficiently decodes the genetic information stored in your genome and synthesizes the corresponding polypeptide chain one amino acid at a time in the process of translation. These structures are considered landmarks for the fact they showed clearly the major contributions to decoding and peptide bond synthesis come from RNA and not protein, as well as for the sheer size of the structures determined.

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by Eric Martz
A historical review on sculptures and physical models of macromolecules.

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G Atilla-Gocumen, L Di Costanzo, E Meggers. J Biol Inorg Chem. 2010 doi: 10.1007/s00775-010-0699-x
A crystal structure of an organometallic half-sandwich ruthenium complex bound to glycogen synthase kinase 3ß (GSK-3ß) reveals that the inhibitor binds to the ATP binding site via an induced fit mechanism utilizing several hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. Importantly, the metal is not involved in any direct interaction with the protein kinase but fulfills a purely structural role.

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Touching stretches cell membranes, opening mechanosensitive ion channels, leading to sensation by the nervous system. Pictured is the transmembrane region of a similar channel in bacteria. When closed, the narrow opening is lined by hydrophobic amino acid sidechains, making it non-conductive to ions.

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