Atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of tubulin heterodimers explain the motion of a microtubule.

ABSTRACT: Microtubules are essential parts of the cytoskeleton that are built by polymerization of tubulin heterodimers into a hollow tube. Regardless that their structures and functions have been comprehensively investigated in a modern soft matter, it is unclear how properties of tubulin heterodimer influence and promote the self-assembly. A detailed knowledge of such structural mechanisms would be helpful in drug design against neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, diabetes etc. In this work atomistic molecular dynamics simulations were used to investigate the fundamental dynamics of tubulin heterodimers in a sheet and a short microtubule utilizing well-equilibrated structures. The breathing motions of the tubulin heterodimers during assembly show that the movement at the lateral interface between

SUBMITTER: Nasedkin A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8448678 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature