Macromolecular crowding and confinement: biochemical, biophysical, and potential physiological consequences.
Expected and observed effects of volume exclusion on the free energy of rigid and flexible macromolecules in crowded and confined systems, and consequent effects of crowding and confinement on macromolecular reaction rates and equilibria are summarized. Findings from relevant theoretical/simulation and experimental literature published from 2004 onward are reviewed. Additional complexity arising from the heterogeneity of local environments in biological media, and the presence of nonspecific interactions between macromolecules over and above steric repulsion, are discussed. Theoretical and experimental approaches to the characterization of crowding- and confinement-induced effects in systems approaching the complexity of living organisms are suggested.
Department of Physics and Institute of Molecular Biophysics and School of Computational Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32306, USA. zhou@sb.fsu.edu
Huan-Xiang
HX
Zhou
Germán
G
Rivas
Allen P
AP
Minton
D001671:Biochemistry / Q000379:methods; D001703:Biophysics / Q000379:methods; D003198:Computer Simulation; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D046912:Multiprotein Complexes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010827:Physiology / Q000379:methods; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
D046912:Multiprotein Complexes; D011506:Proteins