Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jasmine A. Nirody, Lisset A. Duran, Deborah Johnston, Daniel J. Cohen
Summary: The study found that tardigrades exhibit key features of walking similar to insects and show flexibility in interleg coordination under different environmental conditions. This suggests functional similarities in walking coordination between tardigrades and arthropods, possibly due to a common locomotor control circuit or independent convergence onto an optimal control strategy.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Erick Rafael Dias Rates, Charles Duarte Almeida, Elaine de Paula Fiod Costa, Roberta Jansen de Mello Farias, Ralph Santos-Oliveira, Luciana Magalhaes Rebelo Alencar
Summary: This study used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to evaluate four layers of the cornea and analyze their adhesion, stiffness, and roughness. The findings revealed microvilli in the epithelial and endothelial layers, pores in the basement membrane, and collagen fibers in the stroma. These data contribute to a better understanding of the ultrastructures of the human cornea layers and provide new information about their biophysical properties.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marina. G. G. Guenza
Summary: Many biological processes rely on protein aggregates that have dynamic behaviors spanning different scales. A clever combination of spectroscopy and simulation can be used to investigate these diverse dynamics.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marco Giulini, Marta Rigoli, Giovanni Mattiotti, Roberto Menichetti, Thomas Tarenzi, Raffaele Fiorentini, Raffaello Potestio
Summary: The increasing computer power and improved accuracy of atomistic force fields have enabled researchers to study biological systems at the molecular level in detail. However, the length and time scales of many processes of interest are still out of reach for current hardware, leading to important questions remaining unanswered. Coarse-grained models, simplified representations of molecules at a lower resolution than atomistic, are commonly used in the investigation of biological physics problems, but the optimal degree of simplification remains a crucial open issue.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR BIOSCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Atip Lawanprasert, Janna N. Sloand, Mariangely Gonzalez Vargas, Harminder Singh, Tomer Eldor, Michael A. Miller, Sopida Pimcharoen, Jian Wang, Scott M. Leighow, Justin R. Pritchard, Nikolay V. Dokholyan, Scott H. Medina
Summary: Fluorine has become important in protein design, altering their folding, stability, oligomerization, and bioactivity. Perfluorinated amphiphiles can noncovalently modify proteins, changing their conformation and facilitating their dispersion in fluorous phases. Through various approaches, we establish structure-activity relationships and explore their impact on protein dynamics and intracellular trafficking. This research could contribute to the rational design of fluorinated proteins, inform on potential toxicity of perfluoroalkyl substances, and aid in the development of fluorine-modified biologics for drug discovery and delivery applications.
Article
Biology
Shimaa A. Abdellatef, Hisashi Tadakuma, Kangmin Yan, Takashi Fujiwara, Kodai Fukumoto, Yuichi Kondo, Hiroko Takazaki, Rofia Boudria, Takuo Yasunaga, Hideo Higuchi, Keiko Hirose, Andrew P. Carter
Summary: The bending of cilia and flagella is caused by the oscillatory movement of dynein molecules. Researchers constructed a simple model system to study the oscillation of dynein and found that it can cause repetitive bending motions even without additional regulatory structures.
Editorial Material
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Debora S. Marks, Stephen W. Michnick
Summary: An integrated technique is introduced to quantify and disentangle the effects of gene mutations on protein traits, allowing assessments of mutational effects on protein biophysics.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Chuchu Li, Stanislav N. Gorb, Hamed Rajabi
Summary: This study investigates the mechanical properties of the specialized cuticle of desert locust femora, revealing that the hind femur has a lower elasticity modulus despite bearing higher stresses during locomotion. This adaptation may allow for deformations and reduce the risk of material failure. The results deepen the understanding of the structure-material-function relationship in the complex insect cuticle.
ACTA BIOMATERIALIA
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Melina Daniilidis, Matthias J. Brandl, Franz Hagn
Summary: Membrane mimetics play a crucial role in studying the structure and function of membrane proteins. In this study, the authors compared the biophysical properties of circularized and linear nanodiscs and found that circularized nanodiscs have improved membrane fluidity and size stability, making them advantageous for high-resolution NMR studies at elevated temperatures.
JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
Michael Indermaur, Daniele Casari, Tatiana Kochetkova, Cinzia Peruzzi, Elizabeth Zimmermann, Frank Rauch, Bettina Willie, Johann Michler, Jakob Schwiedrzik, Philippe Zysset
Summary: This study compares the mechanical properties of osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) bone with healthy control bone, finding that OI bone has a higher degree of mineralization and significantly increased compressive strength at the extracellular matrix (ECM) level with increased mineral-to-matrix ratio.
JOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biophysics
Vladimir Filkin, Igor Kuznetsov, Olga Antonova, Ilya Tarotin, Alexander Nemov, Kirill Aristovich
Summary: The study investigates the ionic concentration change as a prime mechanism for neurostimulation by ultrasound. By deriving the analytical relationship between tissue mechanical deformations and electric boundary conditions, the study explores the activation thresholds and generation of action potentials in neuronal axon models. The proposed mechanism may be a prime cause for generating action potentials if certain mechanical properties of neural tissues are accurate or cavitation occurs during ultrasound stimulation.
PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASUREMENT
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Doron Kam, Aaron Olender, Amir Rudich, Yoav Kan-Tor, Amnon Buxboim, Oded Shoseyov, Shlomo Magdassi
Summary: Resilin is a protein found in insects that has exceptional elasticity and fatigue resistance, making it suitable for biological functions such as flight and jumping. By utilizing a Multiphoton Absorption Polymerization 3D printing process, objects made entirely of recombinant resilin protein can be printed at a submicron scale. The printed objects have similar mechanical properties to native resilin and better mechanical properties compared to common hydrogels and poly(dimethylsiloxane), enabling potential applications in biomimicking and creating functional objects.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carter J. Wilson, Wing-Yiu Choy, Mikko Karttunen
Summary: The development of AlphaFold2 has brought a paradigm shift in structural biology and has shown excellent performance in predicting disordered regions. The accuracy of the constructed disorder predictor from AlphaFold2 structures varies, with the naive assumption of assigning residues to ordered or disordered based on helices, strands, and H-bond stabilized turns leading to a significant overestimation of disorder. The predicted local distance difference test (pLDDT) provides a reliable measure of residue-wise disorder and shows an interesting relationship with secondary structure.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Elke De Zitter, Siewert Hugelier, Sam Duwe, Wim Vandenberg, Alison G. Tebo, Luc Van Meervelt, Peter Dedecker
Summary: Anisotropic environments can significantly impact the spectroscopy and photochemistry of molecules, leading to complex structure-function relationships. By studying fluorescent proteins as model systems, it was found that changes in spectroscopic properties can be attributed to multiple underlying mechanisms. The research highlights the complex interplay between structure and spectroscopy, identifying key modulators like polarity, hydrogen bonding, and presence of water molecules.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Gabriel Ortega, Miguel A. Aguilar, Bishal K. Gautam, Kevin W. Plaxco
Summary: The interactions of proteins with surfaces play a crucial role in biological processes and biotechnologies, with electrostatics being a key factor. The content of charged amino acids in proteins determines the extent of stabilization by surfaces.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Hai Dong, Zheliang Wang, Thomas C. O'Connor, Aurelie Azoug, Mark O. Robbins, Thao D. Nguyen
JOURNAL OF THE MECHANICS AND PHYSICS OF SOLIDS
(2018)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Thomas C. O'Connor, Robert M. Elder, Yelena R. Sliozberg, Timothy W. Sirk, Jan W. Andzelm, Mark O. Robbins
PHYSICAL REVIEW MATERIALS
(2018)
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Thomas C. O'Connor, Nicolas J. Alvarez, Mark O. Robbins
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
(2018)
Editorial Material
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Thomas C. O'Connor, Nicolas J. Alvarez, Mark O. Robbins
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
(2019)
Article
Engineering, Chemical
Vikram Jadhao, Mark O. Robbins
Article
Thermodynamics
Marco A. Galvani Cunha, Mark O. Robbins
FLUID PHASE EQUILIBRIA
(2019)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Joseph M. Monti, Patricia M. McGuiggan, Mark O. Robbins
Article
Polymer Science
Thomas C. O'Connor, Austin Hopkins, Mark O. Robbins
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Thomas C. O'Connor, Mark O. Robbins
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2020)
Article
Polymer Science
Marco A. G. Cunha, Mark O. Robbins
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Joseph M. Monti, Mark O. Robbins
Article
Materials Science, Ceramics
K. T. Ramesh, Lori Graham-Brady, William A. Goddard, Ryan C. Hurley, Mark Robbins, Andrew L. Tonge, Amartya Bhattacharjee, Joel T. Clemmer, Qinglei Zeng, Weixin Li, Yidi Shen, Qi An, Nilanjan Mitra
Summary: The study describes behavior models for hot-pressed boron carbide in extreme dynamic environments and the integration of physics-based models for deformation and failure mechanisms into a continuum model for the material. The models show that the importance of amorphization and fracture depends on geometry and impact conditions, providing guidelines for improved boron carbide materials design.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CERAMIC SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Mechanics
Marco A. Galvani Cunha, Peter D. Olmsted, Mark O. Robbins
Summary: Both entangled and unentangled polymer melts exhibit stress overshoots when subject to shearing flow. Interrupted shear flows lead to differences in stress overshoots for orthogonal and parallel shear directions, highlighting the complex behavior of entanglements. The molecular dynamics simulations suggest that considering a tensorial measurement of entanglements coupled to orientation could improve the models of entanglement dynamics.
JOURNAL OF RHEOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Physics, Fluids & Plasmas
Joel T. Clemmer, Mark O. Robbins
Meeting Abstract
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ting Ge, Mark Robbins
ABSTRACTS OF PAPERS OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2017)