Related papers: Refolding dynamics of stretched biopolymers upon f…
We summarize the recent simulation progress of micromanipulation experiments on RNAs. Our work mainly consults with two important small RNAs unfolding experiments carried out by Bustamante group. Our results show that, in contrast to…
In this study we evaluate, at full atomic detail, the folding processes of two small helical proteins, the B domain of protein A and the Villin headpiece. Folding kinetics are studied by performing a large number of ab initio Monte Carlo…
A coarse grained model of a random polypeptide chain, with only discrete torsional degrees of freedom and Hookean springs connecting pairs of hydrophobic residues is shown to display stretched exponential relaxation under Metropolis…
Using Monte Carlo dynamics and the Monte Carlo Histogram Method, the simple three-dimensional 27 monomer lattice copolymer is examined in depth. The thermodynamic properties of various sequences are examined contrasting the behavior of good…
We develop a theoretical approach to the protein folding problem based on out-of-equilibrium stochastic dynamics. Within this framework, the computational difficulties related to the existence of large time scale gaps in the protein folding…
We study theoretically the entropic elasticity of a semi-flexible polymer, such as DNA, confined to two dimensions. Using the worm-like-chain model we obtain an exact analytical expression for the partition function of the polymer pulled at…
The unfolding of a polymer below the $\theta$ point when pulled by an external force is studied both in d=2 on the lattice and in $d=3$ off lattice. A ground state analysis of finite length chains shows that the globule unfolds via multiple…
We study the compression and extension dynamics of a DNA-like polymer interacting with non-DNA binding and DNA-binding proteins, by means of computer simulations. The geometry we consider is inspired by recent experiments probing the…
A growing number of proteins have been shown to adopt knotted folds. Yet the biological roles and biophysical properties of these knots remain poorly understood. We have used protein engineering and atomic force microscopy to explore…
The structure of the self-cleaving hairpin ribozyme is well characterized, and its folding has been examined in bulk and by single-molecule fluorescence, establishing the importance of cations, especially magnesium in the stability of the…
Background: Many attempts have been made to resolve in time the folding of model proteins in computer simulations. Different computational approaches have emerged. Some of these approaches suffer from the insensitivity to the geometrical…
The process of protein folding from an unfolded state to a biologically active, folded conformation is governed by many parameters e.g the sequence of amino acids, intermolecular interactions, the solvent, temperature and chaperon…
Protein folding is a phenomenon that has been studied for about 50 years and still remains as an unsolved problem. The main feature of this process is that it occurs as an all or none process, so a protein, can jump directly between folded…
In this paper we report, clarify and broaden various recent efforts to complement the chemistry-centered models of force generation in muscles by mechanics-centered models. The physical mechanisms of interest can be grouped into two…
Simulations of biological macromolecules play an important role in understanding the physical basis of a number of complex processes such as protein folding. Even with increasing computational power and evolution of specialized…
Using molecular dynamic simulation, we study the stretching of an adsorbed homopolymer in a poor solvent with one end held at a distance $z_e$ from the substrate. We measure the vertical force $f$ on the end of the chain as a function of…
We study numerically a lattice model of semiflexible homopolymers with nearest neighbor attraction and energetic preference for straight joints between bonded monomers. For this we use a new algorithm, the "Pruned-Enriched Rosenbluth…
We review the basic concepts and tools for mechanically unzipping RNA hairpins using force spectroscopy. By pulling apart the ends of an RNA molecule using optical tweezers, it is possible to measure the folding free energy at varying…
A geometric analysis of protein folding, which complements many of the models in the literature, is presented. We examine the process from unfolded strand to the point where the strand becomes self-interacting. A central question is how it…
We study numerically the mechanical stability and elasticity properties of duplex DNA molecules within the frame of a network model incorporating microscopic degrees of freedom related with the arrangement of the base pairs. We pay special…