title: Analytic models for mechanotransduction: gating a mechanosensitive channel.
abstract: Analytic estimates for the forces and free energy generated by bilayer deformation reveal a compelling and intuitive model for MscL channel gating analogous to the nucleation of a second phase. We argue that the competition between hydrophobic mismatch and tension results in a surprisingly rich story that can provide both a quantitative comparison with measurements of opening tension for MscL when reconstituted in bilayers of different thickness, and qualitative insights into the function of the MscL channel and other transmembrane proteins.
authors.affiliation: Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125-9500, USA.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Wiggins
authors.forename: Rob
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Phillips
mesh_terms: D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000378:metabolism; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000378:metabolism*; D040542:Mechanotransduction, Cellular / Q000502:physiology*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D007473:Ion Channels; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; C086596:MscL protein, E coli