Related papers: The torque transfer coefficient in DNA under torsi…
There is now a certain consensus that Transcription Factors (TFs) reach their target sites, where they regulate gene transcription, via a mechanism dubbed facilitated diffusion (FD). In FD, the TF cycles between events of 3D-diffusion in…
When the DNA double helix is subjected to external forces it can stretch elastically to elongations reaching 100% of its natural length. These distortions, imposed at the mesoscopic or macroscopic scales, have a dramatic effect on…
The percentage and sequence of AT and GC base pairs and charges on the DNA backbone contribute significantly to the stiffness of DNA. This elastic property of DNA also changes with small interacting ligands. The single-molecule force…
We present a phenomenological dynamical model able to describe the stretching features of the curve of DNA length vs applied force. As concerns the chain, the model is based on the discrete wormlike chain model with elastic modifications,…
The transport of macromolecules, such as DNA, through the cytoskeleton is critical to wide-ranging cellular processes from cytoplasmic streaming to transcription. The rigidity and steric hindrances imparted by the network of filaments…
DNA supercoiling is central to many fundamental processes of living organisms. Its average level along the chromosome and over time reflects the dynamic equilibrium of opposite activities of topoisomerases, which are required to relax…
We study theoretically the feasibility of using transverse electronic transport within a nanopore for rapid DNA sequencing. Specifically, we examine the effects of the environment and detection probes on the distinguishability of the DNA…
The interplay between bending of the molecule axis and appearance of disruptions in circular DNA molecules, with $\sim 100$ base pairs, is addressed. Three minicircles with different radii and almost equal content of AT and GC pairs are…
Polymer translocation is a promising strategy for the next-generation DNA sequencing technologies. The use of biological and synthetic nano-pores, however, still suffers from serious drawbacks. In particular, the width of the membrane layer…
The influence of decoherence and bonding on the linear conductance of single double-stranded DNA molecules is examined by fitting a phenomenological statistical model developed recently (EPJB {\bf 68}, 237 (2009)) to experimental results.…
The nature and the universal properties of DNA thermal denaturation are investigated by Monte Carlo simulations. For suitable lattice models we determine the exponent c describing the decay of the probability distribution of denaturated…
In this short note, a correction is made to the recently proposed solution [1] to a 1D biased diffusion model for linear DNA translocation and a new analysis will be given to the data in [1]. It was pointed out [2] by us recently that this…
Double-stranded DNA translocates through sufficiently large nanopores either in a linear, single-file fashion or in a folded hairpin conformation when captured somewhere along its length. We show that the folding state of DNA can be…
In this work, we combine coarse-grained Brownian dynamics simulations and mean-field theory to study supercoiling dynamics, as well as the steady-state profiles of twist and writhe, in an open DNA polymer where one of the free ends is…
The question of whether DNA conducts electric charges is intriguing to physicists and biologists alike. The suggestion that electron transfer/transport in DNA might be biologically important has triggered a series of experimental and…
DNA denaturation has long been a subject of intense study due to its relationship to DNA transcription and its fundamental importance as a nonlinear, structural transition. Many aspects of this phenomenon, however, remain poorly understood.…
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…
Intracellular positive ions neutralise negative charges on the phosphates of a DNA strand conferring greater strength on the hydrogen bonds that connect complementary strands into a double helix and so confer enhanced stability. Beyond a…
Twisting DNA under a constant applied force reveals a thermally activated transition into a state with a supercoiled structure known as a plectoneme. Using transition state theory, we predict the rate of this plectoneme nucleation to be of…
Acquiring quantitative information on charge transfer (CT) dynamics at the nanoscale remains an important scientific challenge. In particular, CT processes in single molecules at surfaces needs to be investigated to be properly controlled…