Partitioning of the elastic energy in protein-DNA chimeras

ORAL

Abstract

We synthesize Protein-DNA chimeras where a DNA molecular spring mechanically perturbs the conformation of the protein. We measured the elastic energy stored in one such molecule, consisting of the enzyme Guanylate Kinase coupled to a 60 bp DNA spring. From these measurements, the response of the protein in terms of its enzymatic activity, and a mechanical model of the DNA spring we deduce that, in this case, most of the elastic energy of the molecule is stored in the DNA spring. Thus the DNA spring is ``softer'' than the protein.

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Authors

  • Andrew Wang

    Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, California, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA

  • Chiao-Yu Tseng

    Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, California, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA, University of California, Los Angeles

  • Biljana Rolih

    Department of Chemistry \& Biochemistry and The California Nanosystems Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA

  • Alex Levine

    University of California, Los Angeles, UCLA, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UCLA, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Chemistry \& Biochemistry and The California Nanosystems Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA

  • Giovanni Zocchi

    Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Los Angeles, California, UCLA, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA, University of California, Los Angeles