RNA folding using quantum computers.

The 3-dimensional fold of an RNA molecule is largely determined by patterns of intramolecular hydrogen bonds between bases. Predicting the base pairing network from the sequence, also referred to as RNA secondary structure prediction or RNA folding, is a nondeterministic polynomial-time (NP)-complete computational problem. The structure of the molecule is strongly predictive of its functions and biochemical properties, and therefore the ability to accurately predict the structure is a crucial tool for biochemists.

mRNA codon optimization with quantum computers.

Reverse translation of polypeptide sequences to expressible mRNA constructs is a NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem. Each amino acid in the protein sequence can be represented by as many as six codons, and the process of selecting the combination that maximizes probability of expression is termed codon optimization. This work investigates the potential impact of leveraging quantum computing technology for codon optimization.

Elucidating the Role of Hydroxylated Phenylalanine in the Formation and Structure of Cross-Linked Aβ Oligomers.

Amyloid β-protein (Aβ) oligomers play a seminal role in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Cross-linking (X-linking), which can be used to determine Aβ oligomer size distributions experimentally, was reported to stabilize Aβ oligomers. Aβ oligomers X-linked in the presence of copper and hydrogen peroxide may represent the proximate neurotoxic species in AD.

Insights into Formation and Structure of Aβ Oligomers Cross-Linked via Tyrosines.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology is hypothesized to be triggered by amyloid β-protein (Aβ) assembly into oligomers. Oligomer size distributions of both predominant Aβ alloforms, Aβ and Aβ, can be determined in vitro using cross-linking followed by gel electrophoresis. Cross-linking, which can occur in vivo in the presence of copper and hydrogen peroxide, was recently shown to stabilize Aβ oligomers by inhibiting their conversion into fibrils.