Related papers: Single molecule study of the DNA denaturation phas…
We study the size fluctuations of a local denaturation zone in a DNA molecule in the presence of proteins that selectively bind to single-stranded DNA, based on a (2+1)-dimensional master equation. By tuning the physical parameters we can…
We study the thermodynamic and dynamic behaviors of twist-induced denaturation bubbles in a long, stretched random sequence of DNA. The small bubbles associated with weak twist are delocalized. Above a threshold torque, the bubbles of…
A double-stranded DNA unravels thermally through intermediate denatured bubble segments. Intrinsically, fluctuations ensue at the bubble boundaries from non-equilibrium (NE) energy exchanges with the environment. However, such details gets…
We study the static and dynamical properties of DNA in the vicinity of its melting transition, i.e. the separation of the two strands upon heating. The investigation is based on a simple mechanical model which includes the helicoidal…
The denaturation of double-stranded DNA as function of force and temperature is discussed. At room temperature, sequence heterogeneity dominates the physics of single molecule force-extension curves starting about 7 piconewtons of below a…
The formation of local denaturation zones (bubbles) in double-stranded DNA is an important example for conformational changes of biological macromolecules. We study the dynamics of bubble formation in terms of a Fokker-Planck equation for…
DNA supercoiling, the under or overwinding of DNA, is a key physical mechanism both participating to compaction of bacterial genomes and making genomic sequences adopt various structural forms. DNA supercoiling may lead to the formation of…
We propose a model for the fluctuation dynamics of the local denaturation zones (bubbles) in double-stranded DNA. In our formulation, the DNA strand is model as a one dimensional Rouse chain confined at both the ends. The bubble is formed…
Biological information is not only stored in the digital chemical sequence of double helical DNA, but is also encoded in the mechanical properties of the DNA strands, which can influence biochemical processes involving its readout. For…
We study different configurations of permanent magnets and ferromagnetic circuit, in order to optimize the magnetic field for the so-called ``magnetic tweezers'' technique, for studing mechanical properties of DNA molecules. The magnetic…
We study theoretically the denaturation of single RNA molecules by mechanical stretching, focusing on signatures of the (un)folding pathway in molecular fluctuations. Our model describes the interactions between nucleotides by incorporating…
We deduced the torque applied on a single stretched and twisted DNA by integrating with respect to force the change in the molecule's extension as it is coiled. While consistent with previous direct measurements of the torque at high forces…
A statistical model of homopolymer DNA, coupling internal base pair states (unbroken or broken) and external thermal chain fluctuations, is exactly solved using transfer kernel techniques. The dependence on temperature and DNA length of the…
Experimental studies of the thermal denaturation of DNA yield a strong indication that the transition is first order. This transition has been theoretically studied since the early sixties, mostly within an approach in which the microscopic…
Magnetic tweezers are used to study the mechanical response under torsion of single nucleosome arrays reconstituted on tandem repeats of 5S positioning sequences. Regular arrays are extremely resilient and can reversibly accommodate a large…
A unifying theory of the denaturation transition of DNA, driven by temperature T or induced by an external mechanical torque Gamma is presented. Our model couples the hydrogen-bond opening and the untwisting of the helicoidal molecular…
Living cells provide a fluctuating, out-of-equilibrium environment in which genes must coordinate cellular function. DNA looping, which is a common means of regulating transcription, is very much a stochastic process; the loops arise from…
Plectonemes are intertwined helically looped domains which form when a DNA molecule is supercoiled, i.e. over- or under-wounded. They are ubiquitous in cellular DNA and their physical properties have attracted significant interest both from…
We investigate the coalescence of two DNA-bubbles initially located at weak domains and separated by a more stable barrier region in a designed construct of double-stranded DNA. In a continuum Fokker-Planck approach, the characteristic time…
When mixed together, DNA and polyaminoamide (PAMAM) dendrimers form fibers that condense into a compact structure. We use optical tweezers to pull condensed fibers and investigate the decondensation transition by measuring force-extension…