Editing Structural bioinformatics (section)

=== Structure visualization ===
[[File:2LZM.png|thumb|300x300px|Structural visualization of BACTERIOPHAGE T4 LYSOZYME (PDB ID: 2LZM). (A) Cartoon; (B) Lines; (C) Surface; (D) Sticks.]]
Protein structure visualization is an important issue for structural bioinformatics.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Shi M, Gao J, Zhang MQ | title = Web3DMol: interactive protein structure visualization based on WebGL | journal = Nucleic Acids Research | volume = 45 | issue = W1 | pages = W523–W527 | date = July 2017 | pmid = 28482028 | pmc = 5570197 | doi = 10.1093/nar/gkx383 }}</ref> It allows users to observe static or dynamic representations of the molecules, also allowing the detection of interactions that may be used to make inferences about molecular mechanisms. The most common types of visualization are:

* '''Cartoon''': this type of protein visualization highlights the secondary structure differences. In general, [[Alpha helix|α-helix]] is represented as a type of screw, [[Beta sheet|β-strands]] as arrows, and [[Loop (biochemistry)|loop]]s as lines.
* '''Lines''': each amino acid residue is represented by thin lines, which allows a low cost for graphic rendering.
* '''Surface''': in this visualization, the external shape of the molecule is shown. 
* '''Sticks''': each covalent bond between amino acid atoms is represented as a stick. This type of visualization is most used to visualize interactions between [[amino acid]]s...