title: Coarse-grained mechanochemical model for simulating the dynamic behavior of microtubules.
abstract: Modeling the structure and mechanics of microtubules, which play significant roles in various physiological functions of cells, has long been a fascinating issue. In this paper, a coarse-grained mechanochemical model is presented to study the mechanical-chemical coupling and dynamic attributes of microtubules. The interactions among tubulins are taken into account from the molecular basis. This model is used to characterize the conformations of sheet-ended microtubules, to analyze the distributions of interaction energy, and further to simulate the radial indentation process of a microtubule. This method also works for investigating the dynamic properties of microtubules, e.g., their assembly, growth, deformation, and structural evolution for different conditions. This study is helpful for understanding the structure-mechanics-function relationship of microtubules and lays a foundation for further investigation of their dynamic behavior.
authors: Institute of Biomechanics and Medical Engineering, Department of Engineering Mechanics, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
authors: Xiang-Ying
authors: XY
authors: Ji
authors: Xi-Qiao
authors: XQ
authors: Feng
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D008870:Microtubules / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular