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Project

Twist elasticity of DNA

DNA is well-known for its role as the carrier of genetic information. To perform its function, DNA interacts with proteins and these interactions cause its bending, twisting, or stretching. Understanding the mechanical properties of DNA is therefore essential to understand how it interacts with other biomolecules. Our recent work, in collaboration with the experimental group of prof. J. Lipfert of LMU Munich, showed that the currently used model of DNA elasticity has some limitations. We showed that an alternative model, already proposed in the literature but not actually investigated, performs much better: not only such a model explains experiments, but it also solves other puzzling issues on DNA elasticity. The aim of this proposal plans to investigate this alternative DNA model further by means of coarse-grained computer simulations, focusing in the high torsional stress regime in which the molecule supercoils. The results of our simulations will be compared with single molecule experiments from Prof. Lipfert. The research will be performed in closed collaboration with his research group.
Date:1 Oct 2017 →  30 Sep 2019
Keywords:DNA
Disciplines:Classical physics, Elementary particle and high energy physics, Other physical sciences