The Mage Tutorial
The Mage Tutorial is an introduction to molecular
modeling for students in the first year of biochemistry. I developed the tutorial for my
biochemistry lab course. Students who complete this exercise are equipped to use the
widely available programs MAGE and PREKIN to study the structure of any protein for which
atomic coordinates are available in Protein Data Bank format. If you are interested in
learning more about the MAGE Tutorial, see "A Tutorial in Molecular Modeling,"
Gale Rhodes, Journal of Chemical Education, Vol 72, September, 1995, page A178. To obtain
MAGE, PREKIN, demonstration files, and complete documentation, click here.
The tutorial a word-processor document in RTF format, created in ClarisWorks,
version 4.0 for Macintosh. The RTF format should allow importing into any other word
processor on all platforms. Configure your web browser to use your favorite word processor
as a helper application for files of mime type " " with the suffix
".rtf". Then click here to obtain the tutorial.
Your web browser should automatically launce your word processor, and the word processor
should open the tutorial file. If this does not work, send me e-mail, and I can provide other options, including
the reliable low-tech method of mailing you a copy.
To obtain the structure file for the hen egg-white lysozyme/trisaccharide
complex, which is the subject of study in the tutorial, follow these instructions. Read
full instructions before beginning. (You can use this procedure to obtain any atomic
coordinate file from the Protein Data Bank at Brookhaven National Laboratory.)
1. Start by clicking on "PDB WWW Browser" below, or direct your
browser to http://www.pdb.bnl.gov
1. Click on "Searching and Browsing the PDB".
2. Click on "PDB's WWW Browser".
3. On the form that appears, put your cursor in the "ID" box and type
"1hew". Then click "Send Request".
4. At the bottom of the form, the entry "1hew LYSOZYME ..." will
appear. Select it and click "Fetch the Entry with ID Code:".
5. Click "Send Entire Text."
6. From the File menu of your browser, chose "Save As...".
7. Assign the filename "pdb1hew.ent", set the file format to
"text", and save the file in a convenient location.
Here is the source of pdb1hew.ent and thousands of other structure files: PDB'sWWW Browser
If you have the tutorial, MAGE, PREKIN, Demo3_2a.kin, and pdb1hew.ent, you have all you
need to use the tutorial in your teaching. Refer to Appendix C of the tutorial for further
instructions and suggestions.
Please let me know your experiences in using these materials.
HOME