FlexPred: a web-server for predicting residue positions involved in conformational switches in proteins

Conformational switches observed in the protein backbone play a key role in a variety of fundamental biological activities. This paper describes a web-server that implements a pattern recognition algorithm trained on the examples from the Database of Macromolecular Movements to predict residue positions involved in conformational switches. Prediction can be performed at an adjustable false positive rate using a user-supplied protein sequence in FASTA format or a structure in a Protein Data Bank (PDB) file. If a protein sequence is submitted, then the web-server uses sequence-derived information only (such as evolutionary conservation of residue positions). If a PDB file is submitted, then the web-server uses sequence-derived information and residue solvent accessibility calculated from this file.