Related papers: Helicase on DNA: A Phase coexistence based mechani…
We study the unzipping of a double stranded DNA (dsDNA) by applying an external force on a single strand while leaving the other strand free. We find that the dsDNA can be unzipped to two single strands if the external force exceeds a…
The thermodynamic properties of DNA circular molecules are investigated by a new path integral computational method which treats in the real space the fundamental forces stabilizing the molecule. The base pair and stacking contributions to…
We present a simple model which describes elastic response of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) to stretching, including the regime of very high force (up to 1000 pN). ssDNA is modelled as a discreet persistent chain, whose ground state is a…
A repair protein like RecG moves the stalled replication fork in the direction from the zipped to the unzipped state of DNA. It is proposed here that a softening of the zipped-unzipped interface at the fork results in the front propagating…
A DNA-protein complex modelled by a semiflexible chain and an attractive spherical core is studied in the situation when an external stretching force is acting on one end monomer of the chain while the other end monomer is kept fixed in…
In biological cells, DNA replication is carried out by the replisome, a protein complex encompassing multiple DNA polymerases. DNA replication is semi-discontinuous: a DNA polymerase synthesizes one (leading) strand of the DNA continuously,…
We consider a mixture of one neutral and two oppositely charged types of molecules confined to a surface. Using analytical techniques and molecular dynamics simulations, we construct the phase diagram of the system and exhibit the…
We investigate irreversibility and dissipation in single molecules that cooperatively fold/unfold in a two state manner under the action of mechanical force. We apply path thermodynamics to derive analytical expressions for the average…
The pair interaction between two stiff parallel linear DNA molecules depends not only on the distance between their axes but on their azimuthal orientation. The positional and orientational order in columnar B-DNA assemblies in solution is…
We show how single-molecule unzipping experiments can provide strong evidence that the zero-force melting transition of long molecules of natural dsDNA should be classified as a phase transition of the higher-order type (continuous). We…
We propose that supercoiling energizes double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) so as to facilitate thermal fluctuations to an unzipped state. We support this with a model of two elastic rods coupled via forces that represent base pair interactions.…
Homologous gene shuffling between DNA promotes genetic diversity and is an important pathway for DNA repair. For this to occur, homologous genes need to find and recognize each other. However, despite its central role in homologous…
Motor proteins are active enzyme molecules that play a crucial role in many biological processes. They transform the chemical energy into the mechanical work and move unidirectionally along rigid cytoskeleton filaments. Single-molecule…
Using Monte Carlo simulations, we study the hysteresis in unzipping of a double stranded block copolymer DNA with $-A_n B_n-$ repeat units. Here $A$ and $B$ represent two different types of base pairs having two- and three-bonds,…
We present a theoretical study of single-stranded DNA under stretching. Within the proposed framework, the effects of basepairing on the mechanical response of the molecule can be studied in combination with an arbitrary underlying model of…
The two strands of a DNA molecule with a repetitive sequence can pair into many different basepairing patterns. For perfectly periodic sequences, early bulk experiments of Poerschke indicate the existence of a sliding process, permitting…
Using theory and simulations, we carried out a first systematic characterization of DNA unzipping via nanopore translocation. Starting from partially unzipped states, we found three dynamical regimes depending on the applied force, f: (i)…
We study the effect of a coupling between two motor domains in highly-processive motor protein complexes. A simple stochastic discrete model, in which the two parts of the protein molecule interact through some energy potential, is…
Because of the double-helical structure of DNA, in which two strands of complementary nucleotides intertwine around each other, a covalently closed DNA molecule with no interruptions in either strand can be viewed as two interlocked…
The ability of homologous chromosomes (or selected chromosomal loci) to pair specifically in the apparent absence of DNA breakage and recombination represents a prominent feature of eukaryotic biology. The mechanism of homology recognition…