Online tutorial
PDBe
Searching the Protein Data Bank
This course will show you how to search the Protein Data Bank in Europe (PDBe) - EMBL-EBI's resource for the collection, organisation and dissemination of data on biological macromolecular structures.
Who is this course for?
This course is for anyone who would like to learn about PDBe, no previous knowledge of bioinformatics is required to undertake this course, but undergraduate level knowledge of biology may be of benefit. Additionally, you may wish to have a look at Biomacromolecular structures: an introduction to the EBI resources before taking this course.
What will I achieve?
By the end of the course you will be able to:
- Search the PDB archive using PDBe’s search and navigation system
- Know how to refine and save your search query
- Sort and download search results
- Evaluate the best representative structure from the search results
What resources do I need?
There are no specific resources required to complete this course.
DOI: 10.6019/TOL.PDBe-sea-t.2015.00001.1
Course contents
- What is PDBe?
- Why do we need PDBe?
- When to use PDBe?
- How to access and navigate PDBe?
- How to search the PDB using PDBe?
- Guided exercise 1: Giardia lamlia
- Exercise 1: How do I search PDB for Giardia lamblia?
- Exercise 1: How many proteins are there in the PDB for Giardia lamblia?
- Exercise 1: How many of these proteins function as enzymes?
- Exercise 1: Which part of the cell do these proteins come from?
- Exercise 1: What type of ligands do they interact with?
- Guided exercise 2: Glycolysis process
- Exercise 2: How do I search the PDB for enzymes involved in glycolysis?
- Exercise 2: Are all the 10 enzyme structures that are involved in the glycolytic pathway present in the PDB?
- Exercise 2: What part of the cell do the enzymes belong to?
- Exercise 2: How do I identify the different classes of enzymes (e.g. hydrolase) that participate in glycolysis?
- Exercise 2: How many of them display nucleotide binding activity?
- Exercise 2: Which protein family/families does the enzyme Glucokinase belong to?
- Exercise 2: How do I identify the best representative structure from each of the protein families?
- Exploring a PDB entry
- Summary
- Test your knowledge
- Your feedback
- Learn more
- Get help and support on PDBe
- References
How and when to access the course
All our courses are designed with flexibility in mind. You can access them for free at any time, just click on the "Enter Course" button.
It is up to you how you use the course; you can either study the full course or you can focus on sections that are relevant to you. To jump between sections, use the navigation bar on the left or the arrows at the bottom of the page. You can also choose whether to complete the course in one go, or over several visits.
The average time to read through the main body of the course is 3 hours (not including exercises and external links). The time may vary depending on your prior knowledge and how you choose to work through the course.
Sign up to track your learning and more
You can track your progress and keep a record of any completed learning by creating an account. This will give you a 'My learning' page, which will have three main tabs to help keep track of your progress:
Favourite: To add online tutorials to your Favourite tab, you can 'Mark as Favourite' on the front page of online tutorials, allowing you to return and complete them in the future.
In progress: The courses which you have started reading will be added to your 'In progress' tab. Use the 'Mark as complete' button at the end of the course pages to get started.Your ‘In progress’ tab gets updated as you progress through the course and will show you what percentage of the course you have finished and will let you resume the course from where you left on your last visit.
Completed: The courses which you have finished entirely will be added to the 'Completed' tab.
The results you gain from completing quizzes and other interactive content will also be added to your My learning page.
You can register anytime here or click a 'Favourite' or 'Mark as complete' button to start tracking your progress.
You can still access all the online tutorials and interactive content if you do not register, but you will not be able to track your progress.
Making the most of the course
Learning something new takes time and practice. We encourage you to:
- Use the activities and quizzes to help you check your learning, recall and apply key concepts. Look out for these icons
Activities | Quizzes | Videos |
- Revisit sections as and when you need them. Bookmark relevant pages in your browser or use the navigation panel to jump the relevant section.
Getting help and providing feedback
If something isn’t working or if you have a question get in touch by contacting us at trainonline@ebi.ac.uk
Tell us what you thought about the course (both good and bad!) using the “Feedback and help” button found at the top of each page.
Your feedback helps us ensure we are providing training that is relevant and useful for you.
For help and support on EMBL-EBI resources you can contact the helpdesk directly.
Learn more
You can explore other training on offer from EMBL-EBI on our website. We offer online courses, webinars, face-to-face courses and offsite training.