Steered Molecular Dynamics

Steered molecular dynamics (SMD) induces unbinding of ligands and conformational changes in biomolecules on time scales accessible to molecular dynamics simulations. Time-dependent external forces are applied to a system, and the responses of the system are analyzed. SMD has already provided important qualitative insights into biologically relevant problems, as demonstrated here for applications ranging from identification of ligand binding pathways to explanation of elastic properties of proteins. First attempts to deduce potentials of mean force by discounting irreversible work performed on the system are summarized. The non-equilibrium statistical mechanics underlying analysis of SMD data is outlined.