Related papers: A Single-Molecule Hershey-Chase Experiment
DNA and other biopolymers differ from classical polymers due to their torsional stiffness. This property changes the statistical character of their conformations under tension from a classical random walk to a problem we call the `torsional…
The effect of sequence heterogeneity on polynucleotide translocation across a pore and on simple models of molecular motors such as helicases, DNA polymerase/exonuclease and RNA polymerase is studied in detail. Pore translocation of RNA or…
By means of the Brownian dynamics (BD) method of simulations we have developed, we study dynamics of individual DNA undergoing constant field gel electrophoresis (CFGE), focusing on the relevance of the `defect' concept due to de Gennes in…
We present a very simple model for the study of charge transport in a molecule patterned on B-DNA. In this model we use a discrete non-linear Schr\"{o}dinger equation to describe electrons propagating along the sugar-phosphate backbone of…
The experimental conditions by which electromagnetic signals (EMS) of low frequency can be emitted by diluted aqueous solutions of some bacterial and viral DNAs are described. That the recorded EMS and nanostructures induced in water carry…
We use a mesoscale simulation approach to explore the impact of different capsid geometries on the packaging and ejection dynamics of polymers of different flexibility. We find that both packing and ejection times are faster for flexible…
Diverse processes--e.g. bioremediation, biofertilization, and microbial drug delivery--rely on bacterial migration in disordered, three-dimensional (3D) porous media. However, how pore-scale confinement alters bacterial motility is unknown…
Reaction-diffusion waves have long been used to describe the growth and spread of populations undergoing a spatial range expansion. Such waves are generally classed as either pulled, where the dynamics are driven by the very tip of the…
The energetic and transport properties of a double-stranded DNA dodecamer encapsulated in hydrophobic carbon nanotubes are probed employing two limiting nanotube diameters, D=4 nm and D=3 nm, corresponding to (51,0) and (40,0) zig-zag…
The ~4-Mbp basic genome shared by 32 independent isolates of E. coli representing considerable population diversity has been approximated by whole-genome multiple-alignment and computational filtering designed to remove mobile elements and…
Nanopores -- nanosized holes that can transport ions and molecules -- are very promising devices for genomic screening, in particular DNA sequencing. Both solid-state and biological pores suffer from the drawback, however, that the channel…
Several recent experiments, including our own in the fission yeast, S. pombe, have characterized the motions of gene loci within living nuclei by measuring the locus position over time, then proceeding to obtain the statistical properties…
We review statistical-mechanical theories of single-molecule micromanipulation experiments on nucleic acids. First, models for describing polymer elasticity are introduced. We then review how these models are used to interpret…
One striking feature of bacterial motion is their ability to swim upstream along corners and crevices, by leveraging hydrodynamic interactions. This motion through anatomic ducts or medical devices might be at the origin of serious…
Single molecule time trajectories of biomolecules provide glimpses into complex folding landscapes that are difficult to visualize using conventional ensemble measurements. Recent experiments and theoretical analyses have highlighted…
A rapid and low-cost method to sequence DNA would usher in a revolution in medicine. We propose and theoretically show the feasibility of a protocol for sequencing based on the distributions of transverse electrical currents of…
Under dilute in vitro conditions transcription factors rapidly locate their target sequence on DNA by using the facilitated diffusion mechanism. However, whether this strategy of alternating between three-dimensional bulk diffusion and…
We present a short review of various experiments that measure charge transfer and charge transport in DNA. Some general comments are made on the possible connection between 'chemistry-style' charge transfer experiments that probe…
Several controversial issues concerning the packing of linear DNA in bacteriophages and globules are discussed. Exact relations for the osmotic pressure, capsid pressure and loading force are derived in terms of the hole size inside phages…
Single-molecule detection at a nanometric interface in a femtomolar solution, can take weeks as the encounter rate between the diffusing molecule to be detected and the transducing nano-device is negligibly small. On the other hand, several…