Learn structural biology basics

Short guides for students and teachers. Every article links to live 3D examples you can rotate and measure.

• How to read a PDB file
  A plain guide to the PDB file format: ATOM and HETATM lines, columns, occupancy, B-factors, HELIX, SHEET and CONECT records, with real examples to open.
• Alpha helices and beta sheets
  How alpha helices and beta sheets form, how hydrogen bonds hold them together, and how to spot them in real proteins, free in your browser with no install.
• How to view an AlphaFold prediction
  A step-by-step guide to finding, opening and reading an AlphaFold protein model: UniProt accessions, pLDDT coloring and caveats. Free, in your browser.
• pLDDT explained: reading AlphaFold confidence
  What the AlphaFold pLDDT score measures, what the 90, 70 and 50 thresholds mean, how it differs from PAE and B-factors, and how to view it free in 3D.