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PDB-101 Focus: Peak Performance
10/14 
Since 2014, PDB-101 has focused on different topics to help build a collection molecular stories around a particular theme. Past topics have included cancer and diabetes.
In 2025, PDB-101 will highlight the structural stories of Peak Performance: the structural biology of athletics and well-being.
Athletes require bodies that are the best that is possible, all the way from molecules to muscles. By understanding the structure and function of our molecules, athletes can ensure that they are performing at their peak. This knowledge also informs the ways that we all can live our best lives, at all stages of our lives.
Visit the PDB-101 Peak Performance Browser for resources such as:
When a neuron is at rest, sodium ions (yellow) make the cell’s exterior more positively charged than its interior. When the neuronal signal is initiated at the synapse, positively charged ions flow into the neuron. This causes the voltage-gated sodium channels to open, allowing the cell membrane to undergo rapid depolarization. This change in potential activates voltage-gated sodium channels, allowing sodium ions to pour into the cell, further depolarizing the cell and ultimately triggering an action potential.
Visit the 2025 Calendar: The Structural Biology of Nutrition to learn more.
Illustration by RCSB PDB intern Xinyi Christine Zhang.
