Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 10, 2026

Light-driven Molecular Motors on Surfaces for Single Molecular Imaging
Published on: March 13, 2019
The use of an "effective potential" to describe the directed motion of a two-state molecular motor
Ying-Rong Han1, Yong Zhan, Tong-Jun Zhao
1School of Science, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin, China. hanyingrong@163.com
Abstract:
Force generation and directed motion of molecular motors using a simple two-state model are studied in the paper. Here we consider the asymmetric and periodic potential in the model. The symmetric and periodic potential is adopted to describe the interactions between motor proteins and filaments that are periodic and polar. The flux and the slope of the effective potential as functions of the temperature and transition rates are calculated in the two-state model. The ratio of the slope of the effective potential to the flux is also calculated. It is concluded that the directed motion of motor proteins is relevant to the effective potential. The slope of the effective potential corresponds to an average force. The non-vanishing force therefore implies that detailed balance is broken in the process of transition between different states. Moreover, we compare the theoretical relationship of load force and velocity with the experimental data. It is shown that they are consistent.
Related Concept Videos
Motional Emf
Mechanism of Ciliary Motion
The cilia are made up of microtubules in a 9+2 arrangement, with nine microtubule doublet ring bundles, surrounding a pair of central singlet microtubule bundles. The doublet microtubule bundles are...
Mechanism of Ciliary Motion
The cilia are made up of microtubules in a 9+2 arrangement, with nine microtubule doublet ring bundles, surrounding a pair of central singlet microtubule bundles. The doublet microtubule bundles are...
The Movement of Organelles and Vesicles
Motion Of A Charged Particle In A Magnetic Field
Force On A Current Loop In A Magnetic Field

