Activity Number 160

	Overview and Learning Objectives
	Assessment
	Central Concepts
	Textbook References
	Extensions and Connections
	Activity Credits
	Requirements

Amino Acids and Water: 20 Alanine Model (4 connected model pages)

Interactive, scaffolded model

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	Overview and Learning Objectives How does a protein get its shape? Students work with a dynamic model of a folding polymer, which allows them to explore the role of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic amino acids in protein folding. They expand their mental model of protein folding from that of a simple interaction between charges to the more complex interactions between all amino acids (charged, polar, and non-polar) with each other and with the surrounding water molecules or lipids. Based on this model, students construct differently shaped proteins, and learn to reason about their shapes, considering the property of specific amino acids and their position in the chain. An attached concept map provides examples of water-dissolving and oil-dissolving molecules Students will be able to: characterize amino acids according to their response to water; explain how interactions with water molecules affect the shape of a protein; reason about the impact of temperature change on protein shape. return to top



	Assessment See questions 1a and 1b from the following pre/post-test: http://www.concord.org/~barbara/workbench_web/unitV/prepost_test.html return to top



	Central Concepts Key Concept: In addition to the interaction between charged amino acids, the three-dimensional shape of a protein is the result of the interaction of amino acids with their surrounding water molecules. Additional Related Concepts Concept Map Available Molecular Biology Amino acid Lipid Polar nature of water Protein Folding Protein structure Physics/Chemistry Hydrophobicity return to top



	Textbook References Biology: Exploring Life - Chapter 5: The Molecules of Life BSCS Blue (8th Edition) - Chapter 1: The Chemistry of Life BSCS Blue (8th Edition) - Chapter 9: Expressing Genetic Information return to top



	Extensions and Connections See teachers guide. return to top



	Activity Credits Created by CC Project: Molecular Workbench using Molecular Workbench return to top



	Requirements Cortona VRML Plugin return to top

These materials are based upon work supported
by the National Science Foundation under grant numbers
9980620, ESI-0242701, EIA-0219345, DUE-0402553, and 0628181.

Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this
material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect
the views of the National Science Foundation.

Amino Acids and Water: 20 Alanine Model (4 connected model pages)

Overview and Learning Objectives

Assessment

Central Concepts

Additional Related Concepts

Textbook References

Extensions and Connections

Activity Credits

Requirements