Comprising two volumes, RNA: Computational Methods for Structure, Kinetics, and Rational Design is a comprehensive treatment of computational methods concerning the secondary structure, folding kinetics and rational design of RNA.
Volume One concerns energy and structure and is divided into five chapters. Chapter 1 describes the molecular structure of ribonucleotides, basic classes of RNA and databases of RNA sequences and structure. Chapter 2 presents the basic concepts of thermodynamics, since thermodynamics-based algorithms constitute an essential tool in rational design of functional RNA molecules. Chapter 3 describes how empirical secondary structure energy parameters are obtained from ultraviolet absorbance experiments via Van ''t Hoff plots and least-squares data fitting. Chapter 4 describes methods from combinatorics, automata and formal language theory, and complex analysis. Chapter 5 provides an overview of some of the most important thermodynamics-base
