Research advances of molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation in recognizing interaction between muscle proteins and exogenous additives.

During storage and processing, muscle proteins, e.g. myosin and myoglobin, will inevitably undergo degeneration, which is thus accompanied by quality deterioration of muscle foods. Some exogenous additives have been widely used to interact with muscle proteins to stabilize the quality of muscle foods. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) are regarded as promising tools for recognizing dynamic molecular information at atomic level. Molecular docking and MDS can explore chemical bonds, specific binding sites, spatial structure changes, and binding energy between additives and muscle proteins. Development and workflow of molecular docking and MDS are systematically summarized in this review. Roles of molecular simulations are, for the first time, comprehensively discussed in recognizing the interaction details between muscle proteins and exogenous additives aimed for stabilizing color, texture, flavor, and other properties of muscle foods. Finally, research directions of molecular docking and MDS for improving the qualities of muscle foods are discussed.