Abstract

All life processes are fundamentally dependent on proteins, which are linear heteropolymers representing the chemical manifestation of DNA -encoded information. Decades of protein research have yielded a comprehensive compendium of their intricate biochemical and biophysical characteristics. However, simple answers are not frequently available. I will present old and new results that underscore the importance of the polymeric nature of proteins in providing simple and robust interpretations of single protein experiments and simulations. These interpretations are similarly useful in predicting properties of high-entropy states of proteins: current work demonstrates how the polymer nature of peptides provides a hypothesis regarding the relationship between extended poly Q tracts and disease, as well as constraints in the design of multivalent inhibitors of a bacterial toxin.