Scientific analysis of proteins, the workhorses of the cellular world, could become easier by uniting experimental and simulation techniques, according to research published in Biophysical Journal.

A team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Jeremy Smith demonstrated how the combination of supercomputer simulation and a type of neutron analysis called spin echo can be used to study certain motions in proteins.

When large chunks of proteins called domains move relative to each other, these interdomain motions can be detected with spin echo.

"Neutron spin echo can detect motions on longer time scales, from nanoseconds to hundreds of nanoseconds, and very interesting motions in proteins occur on those time scales," Smith said.

Enhanced interpretation of spin echo data will also aid studies of nonbiological materials such as polymers.