Transport of Beads by Several Kinesin Motors

Beeg, Janina; Klumpp, Stefan; Dimova, Rumiana; Gracià, Rubèn Serral; Unger, Eberhard; Lipowsky, Reinhard

doi:10.1529/biophysj.106.097881

Cited by 176 publications

(173 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…This result was obtained by comparing the experimentally determined rate 2 for a 2-kinesin complex with what is expected if the two motors unbind independently, without any interactions. It is however worth mentioning that earlier experiments on kinesin-driven beads were consistent with the long run lengths expected for non-interacting motors 3 or showed run lengths even longer than expected. 60 In order to make quantitative predictions using the theoretical framework outlined above, one either needs to specify the remaining parameters (i.e.…”

Section: General Theoretical Frameworksupporting

confidence: 79%

“…Most importantly they may be able to generate larger overall forces. 60 In addition motor cooperation can lead to longer runs, 3,10,17 in extreme cases up to millimeter. 12 Motor cooperation may also result in an increased velocity in situations where the motors work against an opposing load force if multiple motors share the load.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…15,25,38 The first such studies used beads covered by several kinesin or dynein motors. 3,49,60 While these experiments provided some insight into motor cooperation, they remained limited by the fact that the number of cooperating motors could only be controlled on average. An important improvement for studying motor cooperation was thus the design of synthetic assemblies of precisely defined numbers of motors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A general theoretical framework for studying motor teams has been proposed in 2005 by our group. 38 This framework has been used to study unidirectional transport by one team of motors belonging to the same motor species 3,38 and was later extended to bidirectional transport by two teams of motors. [50][51][52] In addition, several groups have developed models that include detailed descriptions of the single motors involved and that address specific effects such as the stochasticity of stepping 19,41,42 and the geometry of motor assemblies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Elastic Coupling Effects in Cooperative Transport by a Pair of Molecular Motors

et al. 2012

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Abstract-Engineered constructs coupling a defined number of molecular motors provide an opportunity to study the cooperative transport of cargoes. Theoretical descriptions for the dynamics of such complexes can help to understand experimental data or to quantitatively formulate expectations for such experiments and provide a general framework for such analysis. Here, we review and extend recent theoretical studies that focused on pairs of molecular motors to study effects of coupling between the motors. We derive explicit results for two elastically coupled kinesin-1 motors as a function of the coupling strength using both linear and nonlinear springs. In addition, we discuss the general dynamics of such motor pairs, which is governed by characteristic time scales for the spontaneous unbinding of motors and for the built-up of strain forces that are sufficiently large to affect the run length and/or the velocity of the motors. We show how the comparison of these time scales can be used to predict the distinct behavior of different motor species, the effects of coupling, and the impact of the single motor velocity on the observable dynamics of a motor pair.

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Section: General Theoretical Frameworksupporting

confidence: 79%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Elastic Coupling Effects in Cooperative Transport by a Pair of Molecular Motors

et al. 2012

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“…Cooperative effects of the motors are observable, leading for example to increased processivity of a transported cargo and higher stalling forces than for individual motors which has been shown experimentally [244,34]. Cooperation (spontaneous or mediated) between motors thus enhances long-range transport of individual cargos.…”

Section: Coordination-based Scenariosmentioning

confidence: 92%

Intracellular transport driven by cytoskeletal motors: General mechanisms and defects

2015

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Cells are the elementary units of living organisms, which are able to carry out many vital functions. These functions rely on active processes on a microscopic scale. Therefore, they are strongly out-of-equilibrium systems, which are driven by continuous energy supply. The tasks that have to be performed in order to maintain the cell alive require transportation of various ingredients, some being small, others being large. Intracellular transport processes are able to induce concentration gradients and to carry objects to specific targets. These processes cannot be carried out only by diffusion, as cells may be crowded, and quite elongated on molecular scales. Therefore active transport has to be organized.The cytoskeleton, which is composed of three types of filaments (microtubules, actin and intermediate filaments), determines the shape of the cell, and plays a role in cell motion. It also serves as a road network for a special kind of vehicles, namely the cytoskeletal motors. These molecules can attach to a cytoskeletal filament, perform directed motion, possibly carrying along some cargo, and then detach.It is a central issue to understand how intracellular transport driven by molecular motors is regulated. The interest for this type of question was enhanced when it was discovered that intracellular transport breakdown is one of the signatures of some neuronal diseases like the Alzheimer.We give a survey of the current knowledge on microtubule based intracellular transport. Our review includes on the one hand an overview of biological facts, obtained from experiments, and on the other hand a presentation of some modeling attempts based on cellular automata. We present some background knowledge on the original and variants of the TASEP (Totally Asymmetric Simple Exclusion Process), before turning to more application oriented models. After addressing microtubule based transport in general, with a focus on in vitro experiments, and on cooperative effects in the transportation of large cargos by multiple motors, we concentrate on axonal transport, because of its relevance for neuronal diseases. Some important characteristics of axonal transport is that it takes place in a confined environment; Besides several types of motors are involved, that move in opposite directions. It is a challenge to understand how this bidirectional transport is organized. We review several features that could contribute to the efficiency of bidirectional transport in the axon, including in particular the role of motor-motor interactions and of the dynamics of the underlying microtubule network. Finally, we also discuss some open questions that may be relevant for future research in this field.

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Single‐Molecule Spectroscopy of Motor Proteins

Prevo¹,

Açar²,

Kruijssen³

et al. 2000

Encyclopedia of Analytical Chemistry

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Single‐molecule fluorescence spectroscopy has become a crucial tool to study the behavior of biomolecules and their roles in complex biological processes. Single‐molecule methods have in particular contributed to our understanding of the mechanism of force generation and motility of motor proteins. Motor proteins are enzymes that convert the chemical free energy obtained from the hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) into mechanical work in order to drive processes such as muscle contraction and intracellular transport. Here, we review how single‐molecule fluorescence spectroscopy can be applied to motor proteins of the kinesin, myosin, and dynein superfamilies and how such studies have advanced our knowledge of the molecular basis of motor protein action.

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Transport of Beads by Several Kinesin Motors

Cited by 176 publications

References 52 publications

Elastic Coupling Effects in Cooperative Transport by a Pair of Molecular Motors

Elastic Coupling Effects in Cooperative Transport by a Pair of Molecular Motors

Intracellular transport driven by cytoskeletal motors: General mechanisms and defects

Single‐Molecule Spectroscopy of Motor Proteins

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