Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Bio-Nano Systems with MBN Explorer

AbstractWe present results of molecular dynamics simulations performed using a multi-purpose computer code MBN Explorer. In particular we consider the process of laser induced acoustic desorption of lysine amino acids from the surface of a nickel foil. We analyze the rate of lysine desorption from the nickel foil at different foil accelerations and suggest a simple theoretical model to describe the observed results. We note that despite the universality, the computational efficiency of MBN Explorer is comparable (and in some cases even higher) than the computational efficiency of other software packages, making MBN Explorer a possible alternative to the available codes

Molecular dynamics study of accelerated ion-induced shock waves in biological media

We present a molecular dynamics study of the effects of carbon- and iron-ion induced shock waves in DNA duplexes in liquid water. We use the CHARMM force field implemented within the MBN Explorer simulation package to optimize and equilibrate DNA duplexes in liquid water boxes of different sizes and shapes. The translational and vibrational degrees of freedom of water molecules are excited according to the energy deposited by the ions and the subsequent shock waves in liquid water are simulated. The pressure waves generated are studied and compared with an analytical hydrodynamics model which serves as a benchmark for evaluating the suitability of the simulation boxes. The energy deposition in the DNA backbone bonds is also monitored as an estimation of biological damage, something which is not possible with the analytical model