Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have identified simple rules that explain how complex protein structures assemble correctly and remain functional over time, despite having many theoretically possible configurations. The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sci ences, focuses on bacterioferritin, a bacterial protein complex responsible for safely storing iron. Unlike simpler protein assemblies made of identical parts, many bacterioferritins are built from two different types of subunits, each with a distinct role. ...read more read less