title: How Biophysics May Help Us Understand the Flagellar Motor of Bacteria Which Cause Infections.
abstract: Motor proteins are molecules which convert chemical energy to mechanical work and are responsible for motility across all levels: for transport within a cell, for the motion of an individual cell in its surroundings, and for movement in multicellular aggregates, such as muscles. The bacterial flagellar motor is one of the canonical examples of a molecular complex made from several motor proteins, which self-assembles on demand and provides the locomotive force for bacteria. This locomotion provides a key aspect of bacteria's prevalence. Here, we outline the biophysics behind the assembly, the energetics, the switching and the rotation of this remarkable nanoscale electric motor that is Nature's first wheel.
authors.affiliation: EMBL Australia Node for Single Molecule Science, The University of New South Wales, NSW, Australia. matthew.baker@unsw.edu.au.
authors.forename: Matthew A B
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000648:ultrastructure; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D018407:Bacterial Physiological Phenomena; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D002633:Chemotaxis; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D005407:Flagella / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D006868:Hydrolysis; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D009038:Motion; D011487:Protein Conformation; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate
keywords: Bacterial motility; Chemotaxis; Flagellar motor; Molecular motors; Self-assembly; Ultrasensitivity