Computational Modeling of Realistic Cell Membranes

Abstract

Recent advances in coarse-grain modeling allow us to zoom out from individual atoms and molecules to supramolecular complexes and subcellular compartments that contain tens of millions of particles and capture the complexity of the crowded environment of real cell membranes. Here I will describe the state-of-the-art of modelling cell membrane processes with the coarse-grain Martini model developed in our lab. I will illustrate the power of the model by providing a few in-depth examples of large-scale simulations, including the exchange of electron carriers in the photosystem II complex embedded in the thylakoid membrane, and the lateral organization of lipids and proteins in a realistic plasma membrane model.