Fig. 3. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of AeL in M⁺Cl^– (M⁺ = Li⁺ or K⁺). (a) Li⁺ bound to the AeL in MD simulations. Li⁺ are represented in red, the negatively-charged amino acids are shown in yellow and the AeL is represented in gray. The illustration is not to scale. (b) The number of M⁺ (M⁺ = Li⁺, K⁺) bound to the AeL. The ions are regarded as being bound within 3.1 Å from the heavy atoms of the AeL. The binding numbers of Li⁺/K⁺ are fitted into a Gaussian function. (c) Average electrostatic potential around the cis entrance of the AeL.