G. N. Ramachandran coauthored analysis of the conformations accessible to polypeptide backbones. The Ramachandran plot expresses backbone geometry using two torsion angles and identifies regions restricted by steric contacts.
The plot converts a complex three-dimensional chain into a compact geometric test. It remains useful for interpreting protein structure, while allowed regions depend on residue identity and local context.[ref]
Stereochemistry of polypeptide chain configurations by G. N. Ramachandran and others. 1963, backbone torsions and steric restrictions
Portrait of G. N. Ramachandran
. University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf1-10805, Hanna Holborn Gray Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library. Source.
G. N. Ramachandran, full name Ganni Nanjundaiah Ramachandran, was an influential Indian physicist and biologist known for his pioneering work in the field of structural biology. He made significant contributions to our understanding of protein structure through his development of the Ramachandran plot, which illustrates the allowed regions of dihedral angles for amino acid residues in protein structures.
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