Newsletter | Spring 2014 ⋅ Number 61
Teachers build a 3D model of GFP at a workshop organized by the CBTA
In January, the RCSB PDB was part of a workshop organized by the Colorado Biology Teachers Association (CBTA) called Introduction to Protein Structure and Function: the RCSB PDB as a teaching resource. The event was held at Fairview High School in Boulder Colorado.
Co-taught by the RCSB PDB's Rachel Kramer Green and CBTA's Cindy Gay, the workshop provided an introduction to protein structure and function. Teachers learned some fundamentals of protein folding, created paper models of green fluorescent protein (GFP), and learned about PDB-101 and the RCSB PDB. The workshop and related materials were enthusiastically received. Many thanks to Cindy Gay for organizing the event.
In March, the RCSB PDB participated in the "Bringing Current STEM Research into K-12 Classrooms" for New Jersey teachers that was organized and hosted by Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Institute of Marine & Coastal Sciences, Program in Science Learning, and Rutgers Cooperative Extension - Youth Development.
Director Helen M. Berman's presentation Teaching STEM at the interface of biology and chemistry gave an overview of her career, a brief history of structural biology and the PDB, an introduction to RCSB PDB resources and PDB-101. Shuchismita Dutta then led the group in building paper models of GFP, and distributed related resources and materials for the teachers to take to their classrooms.
The RCSB PDB was able to participate virtually at this year's Biophysical Society meeting through Biophysical Society TV. This video, which was aired at the meeting, highlights some of RCSB PDB's efforts in data annotation and in education. The full channel hosts interviews filmed at the meeting (including an interview with Jane Richardson (Duke University) on Celebrating 100 Years of Crystallography) and features on other resources (including the New York Structural Biology Center).
Visitors to the RCSB PDB booth at the San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering's EXPO DAY had the opportunity to interactively learn about drugs, as well as build marshmallow DNA and wire proteins.
The RCSB PDB was pleased to be in attendance at the Opening Ceremony for the International Year of Crystallography (IYCr), held January 20-21 at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) building in Paris, France. Hundreds of wwPDB calendars created for IYCr were distributed at this event. The calendar and related images can also be downloaded (PDF and PPT) from wwpdb.org.
Associate Director Stephen K. Burley gave two presentations in celebration of IYCr in Texas this February. For the Gulf Coast Consortia for Quantitative Biology's symposium on 2014 International Year of Crystallography: Structure Matters, he described Integrative Structural Biology: Role of the Protein Data Bank. Then at Baylor College of Medicine, he presented International Year of Crystallography 2014:
A biased history of macromolecular crystallography.
At Visualizing Biological Data (VIZBI; March 5-7, EMBL-Heidelberg in Germany), Andreas Prlić described Multiscale Visualization of Protein Assemblies. This presentation is available online.
On Saturday, March 22, visitors to the RCSB PDB booth at the San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering's EXPO DAY learned about the basic building blocks of life by building 3D models of DNA and small proteins. They also watched animations of 3D proteins and nucleic acids, and took home posters and other materials about these fascinating structures.
Molecule of the Month author and illustrator David S. Goodsell was part of a special multidisciplinary look into the world of living cells. The Art of Systems Biology and Nanoscience (March 28-29; Sante Fe, NM) included presentations, art exhibits, and performances that explore molecular pathways and cellular structures. The Art of Systems Biology and Nanoscience is an annual event at the gallery 333 Montezuma Arts.
Future activities include a poster at the Biocuration conference (April 6-9; Toronto, Canada), activity booth at the USA Science & Engineering Festival (April 26-27; Washington, DC); and a lecture on How Structural Biology Data Resources are Used for Knowledge Discovery at the Cold Spring Harbor Asia Symposium on Structure Biology (June 9-13; Suzhou, China).
Planned activity for the upcoming American Crystallographic Association (ACA) meeting (May 24-28; Albuquerque, NM) include a presentation and discussion about the new wwPDB Deposition and Annotation System on Sunday, May 25; a poster presentation on the new system; a stand in the exhibition hall; and a presentation by Director Helen M. Berman on Databases in Crystallography: Past, Present, Future as part of the Sunday Transactions session: 100 Years of Crystallography.
The Big Picture's 'Protrumps' (trading) cards
The Wellcome Trust publishes Big Picture, a free educational resource for biology students and their teachers. The Spring 2014 issue is focused on proteins, and utilizes images from RCSB PDB's Molecule of the Month. Available resources include a print magazine and an online collection of related materials, including:
For an example, visit A.M. Gronenborn's Author Profile.
Author Profiles are a unique historical and educational tool offering a timeline display of all structures associated with a particular researcher. Structures are sorted by deposition date, with the first instance of a protein or protein complex highlighted. Images are linked to the Structure Summary page for the entry.
A search box is provided to search by author or structural genomics center name. Author Profile URLs are permanent links that can be copied and shared.
