Physics – Condensed Matter – Soft Condensed Matter
Scientific paper
2011-08-24
Physics
Condensed Matter
Soft Condensed Matter
22 pages, 13 Figures, Updated figures, New comments, Fixed typos
Scientific paper
Microtubules have been in biophysical focus for several decades. Yet the confusing and mutually contradicting results regarding their elasticity and fluctuations have shed some doubts on their present understanding. In this paper we expose the empirical evidence for the existence of discrete GDP-tubulin fluctuations between a curved and a straight configuration at room temperature as well as for conformational tubulin cooperativity. Guided by a number of experimental findings, we build the case for a novel microtubule model, with the principal result that microtubules can spontaneously form micron size cooperative helical states with unique elastic and dynamic features. The polymorphic dynamics of the microtubule lattice resulting from the tubulin bistability quantitatively explains several experimental puzzles including anomalous scaling of dynamic fluctuations of grafted microtubules, their apparent length-stiffness relation and their remarkably curved-helical appearance in general. We point out that tubulin dimers's multistability and its cooperative switching could participate in important cellular processes, and could in particular lead to efficient mechanochemical signalling along single microtubules.
Johner Albert
Kulic Igor M.
Mohrbach Herve
No associations
LandOfFree
Cooperative Lattice Dynamics and Anomalous Fluctuations of Microtubules does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Cooperative Lattice Dynamics and Anomalous Fluctuations of Microtubules, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Cooperative Lattice Dynamics and Anomalous Fluctuations of Microtubules will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-377475