Assessment of homology templates and an anesthetic binding site within the γ-aminobutyric acid receptor.

Background: Anesthetics mediate portions of their activity via modulation of the γ-aminobutyric acid receptor (GABAaR). Although its molecular structure remains unknown, significant progress has been made toward understanding its interactions with anesthetics via molecular modeling.

Methods: The structure of the torpedo acetylcholine receptor (nAChRα), the structures of the α4 and β2 subunits of the human nAChR, the structures of the eukaryotic glutamate-gated chloride channel (GluCl), and the prokaryotic pH-sensing channels, from Gloeobacter violaceus and Erwinia chrysanthemi, were aligned with the SAlign and 3DMA algorithms.

Molecular dynamics simulations.

Molecular simulation is a very powerful toolbox in modern molecular modeling, and enables us to follow and understand structure and dynamics with extreme detail--literally on scales where motion of individual atoms can be tracked. This chapter focuses on the two most commonly used methods, namely, energy minimization and molecular dynamics, that, respectively, optimize structure and simulate the natural motion of biological macromolecules. The common theoretical framework based on statistical mechanics is covered briefly as well as limitations of the computational approach, for instance, the lack of quantum effects and limited timescales accessible.