Processes that Involve Membrane Stretching

The parison is inflated fast, within seconds or less, at a predetermined rate such that it does not burst while expanding. It is a complex process that involves expansion of a nonuniform membrane-like element. Because the extension ratio is high (above 10), it is difficult to calculate the final thickness distribution. Naturally, much of the recent theoretical research on parison stretching and inflation (as in the case with thermoforming) focuses on FEM methods and the selection of the appropriate rheological constitutive models to predict parison shape, thickness, and temperature distribution during the inflation. 

As translocation always involves a dynamic process, which cannot easily be studied by mere experimental techniques, above all, the application of long-term MD simulations should be implemented into the whole process of drug discovery and development. Due to significant increase in compnitational power and improvements in parallelization techniques, nowadays simulations of membrane transport proteins may stretch up to microseconds - that is, to physiologically relevant time scales. In this review we are describing the theory and methodology related to computational techniques used in the modeling of transporters and we will outline the recent developments in the field of ABC transporters and neurotransmitter transporters. 

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