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The nanocaterpillar's random walk: diffusion with ligand-receptor contacts.
Sophie Marbach1,2, Jeana Aojie Zheng3, Miranda Holmes-Cerfon1
1Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, NY, 10012, USA. sophie@marbach.fr.
Soft Matter
|March 29, 2022
Summary
We developed a model to predict nanoscale caterpillar diffusion, revealing that their movement can be significantly slower than expected and highly sensitive to temperature. This offers insights into particle motion for materials design.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Biophysics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Particles with ligand-receptor contacts exhibit complex diffusion due to fluctuating leg attachments to surfaces.
- Quantifying this nanoscale caterpillar diffusion is challenging due to rapid binding and unbinding events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To derive an analytical formula for the diffusion coefficient of overdamped nanocaterpillars.
- To understand the factors influencing nanocaterpillar motion and control their movement modes.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of an analytical formula for the translational diffusion coefficient.
- Validation of the formula using simulations.
- Comparison with experimental data for DNA-coated colloids.
Main Results:
- The effective diffusion coefficient can be orders of magnitude smaller than the background diffusion.
- Diffusion coefficient shows rapid temperature dependence, matching experimental observations.
- The model distinguishes between sliding and hopping motion based on leg dynamics.
Conclusions:
- The derived formula provides a framework for understanding and predicting nanocaterpillar diffusion.
- Insights into motion mechanisms can guide materials design for controlling particle movement.
- The model is applicable to diverse systems including viruses, motors, and colloids.
