Protein Physics

"Protein Physics" is a lively presentation of the most general problems of protein structure, folding and function from the physics and chemistry perspective, based on lectures given by the authors. It deals with fibrous, membrane and, most of all, with the best studied water-soluble globular proteins, in both their native and denatured states. The major aspects of protein physics are covered systematically, physico-chemical properties of polypeptide chains; their secondary structures; tertiary structures of proteins and their classification; conformational transitions in protein molecules and their folding; intermediates of protein folding; folding nuclei; physical backgrounds of coding the protein structures by their amino acid sequences and protein functions in relation to the protein structure. The book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate level students and researchers of biophysics, biochemistry, biology and material science. It introduces the key concepts and theories and deals with fibrous, membrane and especially water-soluble globular proteins, in both their native and denatured states. It summarizes and presents in a systematic form the results of several decades of world wide fundamental research on protein physics, structure and folding. It examines experimental data on protein structure in the post-genome era.