Protein Data Bank

Protein Data Bank, or PDB, is a place where scientists can keep and share the 3D structures of proteins they need to study. Proteins are special molecules made up of smaller building blocks called amino acids, that help cell to do their job. To figure out how proteins work, scientists need to look at their 3D structure - how they are made up and how they fit together. But proteins are too small to be seen with a microscope and so scientists use special tools to 'map out' the 3D structure of proteins. They can then store this map in the PDB. This way, they can quickly look up protein structures from all over the world, which saves them time and makes their research easier.