Conformation & topology as a research area investigates the three-dimensional arrangements and spatial organization of atoms, molecules, and macromolecular assemblies, and how these geometric and topological features govern physical, chemical, and biological behavior. It encompasses conformational analysis of flexible molecules, energy landscapes, and transition pathways, as well as topological descriptors such as knots, links, and entanglements in polymers, proteins, nucleic acids, and materials. The field integrates theoretical models, computational simulations, and experimental techniques (e.g., spectroscopy, scattering, single-molecule methods) to relate structural ensembles and topological invariants to function, dynamics, stability, and self-assembly across molecular and supramolecular systems.
The mysterious substance called dark matter is intrinsically invisible. It cannot be directly observed—rather, its presence is inferred by its gravitational influence on the universe, such as binding galaxy clusters together ...
General Physics
Aug 20, 2025
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New computer simulations that model every atom of a protein as it folds into its final three-dimensional form support the existence of a recently identified type of protein misfolding.
Biotechnology
Aug 11, 2025
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32
What if a complex material could reshape itself in response to a simple chemical signal? A team of physicists from the University of Vienna and the University of Edinburgh has shown that even small changes in pH value and ...
Soft Matter
Jul 31, 2025
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26
How proteins in our cells attain their correct three-dimensional structure is crucial to their function—and to our health. Errors in this process can lead to serious diseases. Researchers at the Center for Medical Biotechnology ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 21, 2025
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I've always been fascinated by how materials break down, especially glasses and polymers that don't have a regular crystal structure. Unlike crystals, where we understand plasticity through things like dislocations, amorphous ...
Compared to single-channel meandering rivers, multichannel braided rivers are often found in environments with sparse vegetation and coarse, shifting bars of sediment. Past research has called the way in which the paths of ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 2, 2025
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It can be found inside gas giants such as Jupiter and is briefly created during meteorite impacts or in laser fusion experiments: warm dense matter. This exotic state of matter combines features of solid, liquid and gaseous ...
General Physics
Jun 25, 2025
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78
A research team has synthesized three-dimensionally shaped molecules containing an internal twist and shown that they possess the properties of organic semiconductors. By introducing methyl groups into a planar molecule containing ...
Nanomaterials
Jun 25, 2025
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83
One of the great biological mysteries of the human body is how hundreds of complex, origami-like proteins, many of which are crucial for normal body function, come to assume their final, correct shape.
Molecular & Computational biology
Jun 18, 2025
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124
Not all DNA looks like the familiar twisted ladder. Sometimes, parts of our genetic code fold into unusual shapes. One such structure, the G-quadruplex (G4), looks like a knot. These knots can play important roles in turning ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 12, 2025
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