A playful intro to proteins - core of molecular biology

What if every protein
was a song?

Your body runs on proteins: tiny molecular machines behind nearly every task your cells perform, from carrying oxygen to fighting viruses to reading your DNA. Each one is a chain of amino acids, picked from just 20 options, represented as letters.

Music has ♪♫♩♬♪ 12 notes in an octave

Life has A S W K E 20 amino acids

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If we mapped each amino acid to a note, what would it sound like?

Play famous proteins like hemoglobin. Hear how two proteins harmonize when they bind. Or compose your own sequence and watch it fold into a 3D shape.

scroll to begin

1. Pick a protein below → 2. Press play sequence → 3. Watch it light up in 3D

Key mapping

Note assignments are an artistic choice; no physical law links amino acids to musical pitches.

show all 20 mappings

binding pair

protein

or paste:

tempo medium ♪ = 120

What you're hearing

Pick a protein to hear its melody.