Understanding how large molecular assemblies are organized can be challenging when all atoms and components are shown together. Complex biomolecular structures can appear crowded, making it harder to explain mechanisms, discuss design ideas, or create engaging visualizations during scientific presentations. If you’ve ever tried to visually explain what a subunit of a protein looks like in context — and then out of context — you know how useful it is to temporarily separate elements and then reassemble them.
This is where Disassemble, a built-in animation effect in the SAMSON molecular design platform, can help.
What does Disassemble do?
The Disassemble animation makes selected parts of a molecular structure (e.g. chains, residues, molecular models, or even meshes) smoothly move away from their current positions, essentially creating a temporary separation in space. This visually unclutters the view, helping to better communicate the organization of molecular assemblies.
The new positions are automatically calculated to move components apart without needing to define trajectories manually. The effect happens between two keyframes in SAMSON’s animation system, using the Animator.
When to use it?
- To demonstrate the components of a protein complex, virus capsid, or supramolecular structure.
- To create educational animations that help students differentiate between functional domains.
- To visually separate and isolate a ligand from its binding site before docking/reassembly animations.
How to apply the effect
- Select the structural nodes or meshes to disassemble. If no selection is made, SAMSON will attempt to guess what should be affected.
- From the Animation panel in the Animator workspace, double-click on Disassemble.
- Two keyframes will be created: the first shows the objects in their original positions, and the second shows them disassembled.
- You can freely move these keyframes to control the timing of the animation.
Refining the animation
You can further customize your presentation using the Inspector:
- Adjust the amplitude of the disassembly to control how far apart elements move.
- Modify the easing curve to change the interpolation behavior — for instance, make parts start fast and decelerate, or the opposite.
This level of control enables you to turn static structures into compelling, dynamic explanations. Here is an example of a disassemble animation applied inside SAMSON:
To see more visual presentations using similar animations, visit:
1AVX – Orbit around assembly or 2XQ6 – Assemble animation
Whether you’re preparing a conference talk, an online lecture, or internal documentation, Disassemble is a great way to improve clarity, focus, and engagement in molecular visualization.
To learn more about the Disassemble animation and how to use it effectively, visit the official documentation: https://documentation.samson-connect.net/users/latest/animations/disassemble/
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.