ﻻ يوجد ملخص باللغة العربية
Vital biological processes such as genome repair require fast and efficient binding of selected proteins to specific target sites on DNA. Here we propose an active target search mechanism based on chromophoresis, the dynamics of DNA-binding proteins up or down gradients in the density of epigenetic marks, or colours (biochemical tags on the genome). We focus on a set of proteins that deposit marks from which they are repelled---a case which is only encountered away from thermodynamic equilibrium. For suitable ranges of kinetic parameter values, chromophoretic proteins can perform unidirectional motion and are optimally redistributed along the genome. Importantly, they can also locally unravel a region of the genome which is collapsed due to self-interactions and dive deep into its core, for a striking enhancement of the efficiency of target search on such an inaccessible substrate. We discuss the potential relevance of chromophoresis for the location of DNA lesions.
Problems of search and recognition appear over different scales in biological systems. In this review we focus on the challenges posed by interactions between proteins, in particular transcription factors, and DNA and possible mechanisms which allow
Filopodia are long, finger-like membrane tubes supported by cytoskeletal filaments. Their shape is determined by the stiffness of the actin filament bundles found inside them and by the interplay between the surface tension and bending rigidity of th
F1F0 ATP synthase (ATPase) either facilitates the synthesis of ATP in the mitochondrial membranes and bacterial inner membranes in a process driven by the proton moving force (pmf), or uses the energy from ATP hydrolysis to pump protons against the c
Actin cytoskeletal protrusions in crawling cells, or lamellipodia, exhibit various morphological properties such as two characteristic peaks in the distribution of filament orientation with respect to the leading edge. To understand these properties,
Generation of mechanical oscillation is ubiquitous to wide variety of intracellular processes. We show that catchbonding behaviour of motor proteins provides a generic mechanism of generating spontaneous oscillations in motor-cytoskeletal filament co