Collaborating globally to develop a foundational structural biology training module
An international joint effort spanning the course of a year has produced a cutting-edge self-paced training resource in structural biology. The Foundations of protein structure module was developed by the Australian Structural Biology Computing (ASBC) community, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory European Bioinformatics Institute’s (EMBL-EBI) Protein Data Bank in Europe, and BioCommons, with the aim of providing accessible training for researchers who want to understand and use protein structures in their work.
‘Alignment, adoption and contribution to global best-practice efforts’ were aims of the Australian Structural Biology Deep-Learning Infrastructure Roadmap, developed in partnership between the ASBC and BioCommons in 2025. By co-designing this module with our partners at EMBL-EBI, we are excited to contribute to the resources they provide to an international audience of researchers.
What is the module and how does it benefit researchers?
Many researchers, undergraduates and clinicians want to use protein structures in their work, but don’t necessarily have the prerequisite knowledge to bridge the gap between theory and practice. This module onboards researchers to the domain, by providing an understanding of the fundamental concepts of protein structural biology, including protein composition, folding, architecture, dynamics, and interactions.
Protein structure elements (Image: EMBL-EBI Training)
For example learners gain insight into:
The sequence-structure-function relationship
Secondary, tertiary and quaternary structures, including alpha helixes and beta sheets, motifs, domains, and folds
The dynamic and flexible nature of proteins and how this impacts biological function.
Who developed ‘Foundations of structural biology’?
The module was co-designed over twelve months by collaborators based across Australia and the United Kingdom. As the team was working across continents and vast time zones, they relied on a mix of asynchronous drafting and regular online meetings for coordination, planning, and discussion of the content.
The contributors were:
From the ASBC and BioCommons: Dr Michael Healy (University of Queensland), Dr Kristina Gagalova (Curtin University), Dr Kate Michie (UNSW), Dr Thomas Litfin (UNSW and Australian BioCommons), and Dr Johan Gustafsson (Australian BioCommons)
From EMBL-EBI: Dr Jennifer Fleming, Dr Paulyna Magaña, Dr Flaminia Zane (reviewer), and Dr Ajay Mishra (reviewer).
Beyond the module itself, this project has strengthened the connection between EMBL-EBI, the ASBC, and BioCommons, and will lead to further collaboration on a set of structural bioinformatics modules that will complement and extend existing EMBL-EBI training resources.
Foundations of protein structure has been released as an online tutorial by EMBL-EBI Training as part of their mission to deliver world-class training in data-driven life sciences.
