What benefits can these simulations of protein folding bring?

With simulations, one can study aspects of folding and misfolding (and related disease) that one could never see with just experiment alone. Simulations won’t replace experiment, but can be a critically useful tool to go beyond what one could solely do in the lab. Yet experiments will always be crucial for verifying a simulation. We are combining our simulation predictions with laboratory tests (either done in my lab or in collaborators). Working together, we can greatly push the boundary of what used to be considered to be impossible, even just a year or two ago.