@article{DjurdjevacConradWeberSchuette2016, author = {Djurdjevac Conrad, Natasa and Weber, Marcus and Sch{\"u}tte, Christof}, title = {Finding dominant structures of nonreversible Markov processes}, volume = {14}, journal = {Multiscale Modeling and Simulation}, number = {4}, doi = {10.1137/15M1032272}, pages = {1319 -- 1340}, year = {2016}, language = {en} } @misc{BojarovskiHegeLieetal.2015, author = {Bojarovski, Stefan and Hege, Hans-Christian and Lie, Han Cheng and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Topological analysis and visualization of scalar functions characterizing conformational transitions of molecules on multiple time-scales}, journal = {Shape Up 2015 - Exercises in Materials Geometry and Topology, 14-18 Sept. 2015, Berlin, Germany}, year = {2015}, abstract = {Molecular processes such as protein folding or ligand-receptor-binding can be understood by analyzing the free energy landscape. Those processes are often metastable, i.e. the molecular systems remain in basins around local minima of the free energy landscape, and in rare cases undergo gauche transitions between metastable states by passing saddle-points of this landscape. By discretizing the configuration space, this can be modeled as a discrete Markov process. One way to compute the transition rates between conformations of a molecular system is by utilizing Transition Path Theory and the concept of committor functions. A fundamental problem from the computational point of view is that many time-scales are involved, ranging from 10^(-14) sec for the fastest motion to 10^(-6) sec or more for conformation changes that cause biological effects. The goal of our work is to provide a better understanding of such transitions in configuration space on various time-scales by analyzing characteristic scalar functions topologically and geometrically. We are developing suitable visualization and interaction techniques to support our analysis. For example, we are analyzing a transition rate indicator function by computing and visualizing its Reeb graph together with the sets of molecular states corresponding to maxima of the transition rate indicator function. A particular challenge is the high dimensionality of the domain which does not allow for a straightforward visualization of the function. The computational topology approach to the analysis of the transition rate indicator functions for a molecular system allows to explore different time scales of the system by utilizing coarser or finer topological partitioning of the function. A specific goal is the development of tools for analyzing the hierarchy of these partitionings. This approach tackles the analysis of a complex and sparse dataset from a different angle than the well-known spectral analysis of Markov State Models.}, language = {en} } @article{KrebekvonAchaziSollederetal.2016, author = {Krebek, von, Larissa K. S. and Achazi, Andreas J. and Solleder, Marthe and Weber, Marcus and Paulus, Beate and Schalley, Christoph A.}, title = {Allosteric and Chelate Cooperativity in Divalent Crown Ether-Ammonium Complexes with Strong Binding Enhancements}, volume = {22}, journal = {Chem. Eur. J.}, number = {43}, doi = {10.1002/chem.201603098}, pages = {15475 -- 15484}, year = {2016}, language = {en} } @misc{FackeldeyKoltaiNeviretal.2017, author = {Fackeldey, Konstantin and Koltai, P{\´e}ter and N{\´e}vir, Peter and Rust, Henning and Schild, Axel and Weber, Marcus}, title = {From Metastable to Coherent Sets - time-discretization schemes}, issn = {1438-0064}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-66074}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Given a time-dependent stochastic process with trajectories x(t) in a space \$\Omega\$, there may be sets such that the corresponding trajectories only very rarely cross the boundaries of these sets. We can analyze such a process in terms of metastability or coherence. Metastable sets M are defined in space \$M\subset\Omega\$, coherent sets \$M(t)\subset\Omega\$ are defined in space and time. Hence, if we extend the space by the time-variable t, coherent sets are metastable sets in \$\Omega\times[0,\infty]\$. This relation can be exploited, because there already exist spectral algorithms for the identification of metastable sets. In this article we show that these well-established spectral algorithms (like PCCA+) also identify coherent sets of non-autonomous dynamical systems. For the identification of coherent sets, one has to compute a discretization (a matrix T) of the transfer operator of the process using a space-timediscretization scheme. The article gives an overview about different time-discretization schemes and shows their applicability in two different fields of application.}, language = {en} } @article{IgdeRoeblitzMuelleretal.2017, author = {Igde, Sinaida and R{\"o}blitz, Susanna and M{\"u}ller, Anne and Kolbe, Katharina and Boden, Sophia and Fessele, Claudia and Lindhorst, Thisbe and Weber, Marcus and Hartmann, Laura}, title = {Linear Precision Glycomacromolecules with Varying Interligand Spacing and Linker Functionalities Binding to Concanavalin A and the Bacterial Lectin FimH}, volume = {17}, journal = {Marcomolecular Bioscience}, number = {12}, doi = {10.1002/mabi.201700198}, pages = {1700198}, year = {2017}, language = {en} } @misc{Weber2007, author = {Weber, Marcus}, title = {Conformation-based transition state theory}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-9612}, number = {07-18}, year = {2007}, abstract = {For the treatment of equilibrated molecular systems in a heat bath we propose a transition state theory that is based on conformation dynamics. In general, a set-based discretization of a Markov operator \${\cal P}^\tau\$ does not preserve the Markov property. In this article, we propose a discretization method which is based on a Galerkin approach. This discretization method preserves the Markov property of the operator and can be interpreted as a decomposition of the state space into (fuzzy) sets. The conformation-based transition state theory presented here can be seen as a first step in conformation dynamics towards the computation of essential dynamical properties of molecular systems without time-consuming molecular dynamics simulations.}, language = {en} } @misc{KubeLasserWeber2007, author = {Kube, Susanna and Lasser, Caroline and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Monte Carlo sampling of Wigner functions and surface hopping quantum dynamics}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-9604}, number = {07-17}, year = {2007}, abstract = {Wigner transformation provides a one-to-one correspondence between functions on position space (wave functions) and functions on phase space (Wigner functions). Weighted integrals of Wigner functions yield quadratic quantities of wave functions like position and momentum densities or expectation values. For molecular quantum systems, suitably modified classical transport of Wigner functions provides an asymptotic approximation of the dynamics in the high energy regime. The article addresses the computation of Wigner functions by Monte Carlo quadrature. An ad aption of the Metropolis algorithm for the approximation of signed measures with disconnected support is systematically tested in combination with a surface hopping algorithm for non-adiabatic quantum dynamics. The numerical experiments give expectation values and level populations with an error of two to three percent, which agrees with the theoretically expected accuracy.}, language = {en} } @article{ThiesSunkaraRayetal.2023, author = {Thies, Arne and Sunkara, Vikram and Ray, Sourav and Wulkow, Hanna and Celik, M. {\"O}zg{\"u}r and Yerg{\"o}z, Fatih and Sch{\"u}tte, Christof and Stein, Christoph and Weber, Marcus and Winkelmann, Stefanie}, title = {Modelling altered signalling of G-protein coupled receptors in inflamed environment to advance drug design}, volume = {13}, journal = {Scientific Reports}, number = {607}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-023-27699-w}, year = {2023}, abstract = {We previously reported the successful design, synthesis and testing of the prototype opioid painkiller NFEPP that does not elicit adverse side effects. The design process of NFEPP was based on mathematical modelling of extracellular interactions between G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) and ligands, recognizing that GPCRs function differently under pathological versus healthy conditions. We now present an additional and novel stochastic model of GPCR function that includes intracellular dissociation of G-protein subunits and modulation of plasma membrane calcium channels and their dependence on parameters of inflamed and healthy tissue (pH, radicals). The model is validated against in vitro experimental data for the ligands NFEPP and fentanyl at different pH values and radical concentrations. We observe markedly reduced binding affinity and calcium channel inhibition for NFEPP at normal pH compared to lower pH, in contrast to the effect of fentanyl. For increasing radical concentrations, we find enhanced constitutive G-protein activation but reduced ligand binding affinity. Assessing the different effects, the results suggest that, compared to radicals, low pH is a more important determinant of overall GPCR function in an inflamed environment. Future drug design efforts should take this into account.}, language = {en} } @misc{RayThiesSunkaraetal.2021, author = {Ray, Sourav and Thies, Arne and Sunkara, Vikram and Wulkow, Hanna and Celik, {\"O}zg{\"u}r and Yerg{\"o}z, Fatih and Sch{\"u}tte, Christof and Stein, Christoph and Weber, Marcus and Winkelmann, Stefanie}, title = {Modelling altered signalling of G-protein coupled receptors in inflamed environment to advance drug design}, issn = {1438-0064}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-82797}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Initiated by mathematical modelling of extracellular interactions between G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) and ligands in normal versus diseased (inflamed) environments, we previously reported the successful design, synthesis and testing of the prototype opioid painkiller NFEPP that does not elicit adverse side effects. Uniquely, this design recognised that GPCRs function differently under pathological versus healthy conditions. We now present a novel stochastic model of GPCR function that includes intracellular dissociation of G-protein subunits and modulation of plasma membrane calcium channels associated with parameters of inflamed tissue (pH, radicals). By means of molecular dynamics simulations, we also assessed qualitative changes of the reaction rates due to additional disulfide bridges inside the GPCR binding pocket and used these rates for stochastic simulations of the corresponding reaction jump process. The modelling results were validated with in vitro experiments measuring calcium currents and G-protein activation. We found markedly reduced G-protein dissociation and calcium channel inhibition induced by NFEPP at normal pH, and enhanced constitutive G-protein activation but lower probability of ligand binding with increasing radical concentrations. These results suggest that, compared to radicals, low pH is a more important determinant of overall GPCR function in an inflamed environment. Future drug design efforts should take this into account.}, language = {en} } @article{FackeldeyGorgullaWeber2021, author = {Fackeldey, Konstantin and Gorgulla, Christoph and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Neue Medikamente dank Supercomputern}, journal = {Spektrum der Wissenschaft}, number = {11}, pages = {40 -- 46}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Die aktuelle Pandemie verdeutlicht, wie wichtig es ist, rasch geeignete Arzneimittel zu finden. In Computer­simulationen gelingt das erheblich schneller als im Labor. Gegen das Coronavirus ließen sich auf diese Weise bereits Wirkstoffkandidaten identifizieren.}, language = {de} } @misc{RaharinirinaWeberBirketal.2021, author = {Raharinirina, N. Alexia and Weber, Marcus and Birk, Ralph and Fackeldey, Konstantin and Klasse, Sarah M. and Richter, Tonio Sebastian}, title = {Different Tools and Results for Correspondence Analysis}, doi = {10.12752/8257}, year = {2021}, abstract = {This is a list of codes generated from ancient egyptian texts. The codes are used for a correspondence analysis (CA). Codes and CA software are available from the linked webpage.}, language = {en} } @article{SeckerFackeldeyWeberetal.2023, author = {Secker, Christopher and Fackeldey, Konstantin and Weber, Marcus and Ray, Sourav and Gorgulla, Christoph and Sch{\"u}tte, Christof}, title = {Novel multi-objective affinity approach allows to identify pH-specific μ-opioid receptor agonists}, volume = {15}, journal = {Journal of Cheminformatics}, doi = {10.1186/s13321-023-00746-4}, year = {2023}, abstract = {Opioids are essential pharmaceuticals due to their analgesic properties, however, lethal side effects, addiction, and opioid tolerance are extremely challenging. The development of novel molecules targeting the μ-opioid receptor (MOR) in inflamed, but not in healthy tissue, could significantly reduce these unwanted effects. Finding such novel molecules can be achieved by maximizing the binding affinity to the MOR at acidic pH while minimizing it at neutral pH, thus combining two conflicting objectives. Here, this multi-objective optimal affinity approach is presented, together with a virtual drug discovery pipeline for its practical implementation. When applied to finding pH-specific drug candidates, it combines protonation state-dependent structure and ligand preparation with high-throughput virtual screening. We employ this pipeline to characterize a set of MOR agonists identifying a morphine-like opioid derivative with higher predicted binding affinities to the MOR at low pH compared to neutral pH. Our results also confirm existing experimental evidence that NFEPP, a previously described fentanyl derivative with reduced side effects, and recently reported β-fluorofentanyls and -morphines show an increased specificity for the MOR at acidic pH when compared to fentanyl and morphine. We further applied our approach to screen a >50K ligand library identifying novel molecules with pH-specific predicted binding affinities to the MOR. The presented differential docking pipeline can be applied to perform multi-objective affinity optimization to identify safer and more specific drug candidates at large scale.}, language = {en} } @article{SikorskiWeberSchuette2021, author = {Sikorski, Alexander and Weber, Marcus and Sch{\"u}tte, Christof}, title = {The Augmented Jump Chain}, volume = {4}, journal = {Advanced Theory and Simulations}, number = {4}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, arxiv = {http://arxiv.org/abs/2008.04624}, doi = {10.1002/adts.202000274}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Modern methods of simulating molecular systems are based on the mathematical theory of Markov operators with a focus on autonomous equilibrated systems. However, non-autonomous physical systems or non-autonomous simulation processes are becoming more and more important. A representation of non-autonomous Markov jump processes is presented as autonomous Markov chains on space-time. Augmenting the spatial information of the embedded Markov chain by the temporal information of the associated jump times, the so-called augmented jump chain is derived. The augmented jump chain inherits the sparseness of the infinitesimal generator of the original process and therefore provides a useful tool for studying time-dependent dynamics even in high dimensions. Furthermore, possible generalizations and applications to the computation of committor functions and coherent sets in the non-autonomous setting are discussed. After deriving the theoretical foundations, the concepts with a proof-of-concept Galerkin discretization of the transfer operator of the augmented jump chain applied to simple examples are illustrated.}, language = {en} } @article{SechiSikorskiWeber2021, author = {Sechi, Renata and Sikorski, Alexander and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Estimation of the Koopman Generator by Newton's Extrapolation}, volume = {19}, journal = {Multiscale Modeling and Simulation}, number = {2}, publisher = {SIAM}, doi = {10.1137/20M1333006}, pages = {758 -- 774}, year = {2021}, abstract = {This article addresses the problem of estimating the Koopman generator of a Markov process. The direct computation of the infinitesimal generator is not easy because of the discretization of the state space, in particular because of the trade-off inherent in the choice of the best lag time to study the process. Short lag times implies a strong discretization of the state space and a consequent loss of Markovianity. Large lag times bypass events on fast timescales. We propose a method to approximate the generator with the computation of the Newton polynomial extrapolation. This technique is a multistep approach which uses as its input Koopman transfer operators evaluated for a series of lag times. Thus, the estimated infinitesimal generator combines information from different time resolutions and does not bias only fast- or slow-decaying dynamics. We show that the multi-scale Newton method can improve the estimation of the generator in comparison to the computation using finite difference or matrix logarithm methods.}, language = {en} } @misc{WitzigBeckenbachEifleretal.2016, author = {Witzig, Jakob and Beckenbach, Isabel and Eifler, Leon and Fackeldey, Konstantin and Gleixner, Ambros and Grever, Andreas and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Mixed-Integer Programming for Cycle Detection in Non-reversible Markov Processes}, issn = {1438-0064}, doi = {10.1137/16M1091162}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0297-zib-60353}, year = {2016}, abstract = {In this paper, we present a new, optimization-based method to exhibit cyclic behavior in non-reversible stochastic processes. While our method is general, it is strongly motivated by discrete simulations of ordinary differential equations representing non-reversible biological processes, in particular molecular simulations. Here, the discrete time steps of the simulation are often very small compared to the time scale of interest, i.e., of the whole process. In this setting, the detection of a global cyclic behavior of the process becomes difficult because transitions between individual states may appear almost reversible on the small time scale of the simulation. We address this difficulty using a mixed-integer programming model that allows us to compute a cycle of clusters with maximum net flow, i.e., large forward and small backward probability. For a synthetic genetic regulatory network consisting of a ring-oscillator with three genes, we show that this approach can detect the most productive overall cycle, outperforming classical spectral analysis methods. Our method applies to general non-equilibrium steady state systems such as catalytic reactions, for which the objective value computes the effectiveness of the catalyst.}, language = {en} } @article{WitzigBeckenbachEifleretal.2018, author = {Witzig, Jakob and Beckenbach, Isabel and Eifler, Leon and Fackeldey, Konstantin and Gleixner, Ambros and Grever, Andreas and Weber, Marcus}, title = {Mixed-Integer Programming for Cycle Detection in Non-reversible Markov Processes}, volume = {16}, journal = {Multiscale Modeling and Simulation}, number = {1}, issn = {1438-0064}, doi = {10.1137/16M1091162}, pages = {248 -- 265}, year = {2018}, abstract = {In this paper, we present a new, optimization-based method to exhibit cyclic behavior in non-reversible stochastic processes. While our method is general, it is strongly motivated by discrete simulations of ordinary differential equations representing non-reversible biological processes, in particular molecular simulations. Here, the discrete time steps of the simulation are often very small compared to the time scale of interest, i.e., of the whole process. In this setting, the detection of a global cyclic behavior of the process becomes difficult because transitions between individual states may appear almost reversible on the small time scale of the simulation. We address this difficulty using a mixed-integer programming model that allows us to compute a cycle of clusters with maximum net flow, i.e., large forward and small backward probability. For a synthetic genetic regulatory network consisting of a ring-oscillator with three genes, we show that this approach can detect the most productive overall cycle, outperforming classical spectral analysis methods. Our method applies to general non-equilibrium steady state systems such as catalytic reactions, for which the objective value computes the effectiveness of the catalyst.}, language = {en} }