0000000000653281
AUTHOR
Giorgina Corongiu
Hydration of agarose double helix: A monte carlo simulation
The structure of the water around agarose double helix is analyzed with ab initio quantum mechanical calculations and Monte Carlo simulations. The potential surface is sampled by computing the interaction energy between fragments of agarose and a water molecule placed at 221 different orientations and/or positions. These energy values are fitted to a simple analytical expression representing atom-atom pair potentials for a water molecule interacting with agarose. A preliminary understanding of the agarose-water interaction is obtained from isoenergy contour maps at planar cross sections, perpendicular to the long axis of the double helix, and for cylindrical surfaces enclosing the double he…
The hydration shell of myoglobin.
The space in the unit cell of a metmyoglobin crystal not occupied by myoglobin atoms was filled with water using Monte Carlo calculations. Independent calculations with different amounts of water have been performed. Structure factors were calculated using the water coordinates thus obtained and the known coordinates of the myoglobin atoms. A comparison with experimental structure factors showed that both the low and the high resolution regime could be well reproduced with 814 Monte Carlo water molecules per unit cell with a B-value of 50 A2. The Monte Carlo water molecules yield a smaller standard R-value (0.166) than using a homogeneous electron density for the simulation of the crystal w…