Related papers: Physics of base-pairing dynamics in DNA

The thermodynamical properties of heterogeneous DNA sequences are computed by path integral techniques applied to a nonlinear model Hamiltonian. The base pairs relative displacements are interpreted as time dependent paths whose amplitudes…

The closure of long equilibrated denaturation bubbles in DNA is studied using Brownian dynamics simulations. A minimal mesoscopic model is used where the double-helix is made of two interacting bead-spring freely rotating strands, with a…

The sequence-dependent elasticity of double-helical DNA on a nm length scale can be captured by the rigid base-pair model, whose strains are the relative position and orientation of adjacent base-pairs. Corresponding elastic potentials have…

We develop further a statistical model coupling denaturation and chain conformations in DNA (Palmeri J, Manghi M and Destainville N 2007 Phys. Rev. Lett. 99 088103). Our Discrete Helical Wormlike Chain model takes explicitly into account…

While the behavior of double stranded DNA at mesoscopic scales is fairly well understood, less is known about its relation to the rich mechanical properties in the base-pair scale, which is crucial, for instance, to understand DNA-protein…

Although mechanical properties of DNA are well characterized at the kilo base-pair range, a number of recent experiments have suggested that DNA is more flexible at shorter length scales, which correspond to the regime that is crucial for…

By exploring a recent model [Palmeri, J., M. Manghi, and N. Destainville. 2007. Phys. Rev. Lett. 99:088103] where DNA bending elasticity, described by the wormlike chain model, is coupled to base-pair denaturation, we demonstrate that small…

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…

All living systems can function only far away from equilibrium, and for this reason chemical kinetic methods are critically important for uncovering the mechanisms of biological processes. Here we present a new theoretical method of…

Nucleic acids have been regarded as stiff polymers with long-range flexibility and generally modeled using elastic rod models of polymer physics. Notwithstanding, investigations carried out over the past few years on single fragments of…

DNA is now firmly established as a versatile and robust platform for achieving synthetic nanostructures. While the folding of single molecules into complex structures is routinely achieved through engineering basepair sequences, much less…

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…

We present a generic model for DNA at the base-pair level. We use a variant of the Gay-Berne potential to represent the stacking energy between neighboring base-pairs. The sugar-phosphate backbones are taken into account by semi-rigid…

We consider force-induced unzipping transition for a heterogeneous DNA model with a correlated base-sequence. Both finite-range and long-range correlated situations are considered. It is shown that finite-range correlations increase…

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 present a study on the role of defects on the stability of short DNA molecules. We consider short DNA molecules (16 base pairs) and investigate the thermal as well as mechanical denaturation of these molecules in the presence of defects…

DNA supercoils are generated in genome regulation processes such as transcription and replication, and provide mechanical feedback to such processes. Under tension, DNA supercoil can present a coexistence state of plectonemic (P) and…

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 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…

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…