Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Mechanical Protein Functions01:58

Mechanical Protein Functions

Proteins perform many mechanical functions in a cell. These proteins can be classified into two general categories- proteins that generate mechanical forces and proteins that are subjected to mechanical forces. Proteins providing mechanical support to the structure of the cell, such as keratin, are subjected to mechanical force, whereas proteins involved in cell movement and transport of molecules across cell membranes, such as an ion pump, are examples of generating mechanical force. 

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Large field of view fluorescence imaging of microfluidic devices with a tandem-lens macroscope.

Lab on a chip·2026
Same author

High-throughput biochemical phenotyping of SHP2 variants reveals the molecular basis of diseases and allosteric drug inhibition.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

FoTO1 orchestrates Taxol biosynthesis through catalytic and non-catalytic mechanisms.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Engineering the mechanosensitivity of single DNA molecules via high-throughput microfluidic force spectroscopy.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

uSort-M: Scalable isolation of user-defined sequences from diverse pooled libraries.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Functional Characterization of Glucokinase Variants to Aid Clinical Interpretation of Monogenic Diabetes.

International journal of molecular sciences·2026
Same journal

A human-specific genetic modifier reconfigures large-scale cortical network dynamics underlying behavioral performance.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

<i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> uses a eukaryotic-like uridyltransferase to make UDP-GlcNAc for cell wall synthesis.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

Dynamic redistribution of eIF4F controls cap-dependent translation initiation.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

When does additional information improve accuracy of RNA secondary structure prediction?

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

Normative brain-state trajectories reveal deviation from healthy aging in Alzheimer's disease.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same journal

Noradrenergic infraslow rhythm during sleep is the critical link between heart-rate dynamics and memory consolidation.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 8, 2026

High-throughput Protein Expression Generator Using a Microfluidic Platform
09:26

High-throughput Protein Expression Generator Using a Microfluidic Platform

Published on: August 23, 2012

11.7K

Quantifying protein unfolding kinetics with a high-throughput microfluidic platform.

B Atsavapranee1, F Sunden2, D Herschlag2

  • 1Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305.

Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|January 27, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers developed SPARKfold, a microfluidic platform, to measure protein unfolding rates. This new method allows rapid, parallel analysis of protein variants, aiding in understanding kinetic stability and designing more robust proteins.

More Related Videos

Microfluidic Mixers for Studying Protein Folding
12:42

Microfluidic Mixers for Studying Protein Folding

Published on: April 10, 2012

15.0K
A Rapid and Quantitative Fluorimetric Method for Protein-Targeting Small Molecule Drug Screening
08:34

A Rapid and Quantitative Fluorimetric Method for Protein-Targeting Small Molecule Drug Screening

Published on: October 16, 2015

10.0K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 8, 2026

High-throughput Protein Expression Generator Using a Microfluidic Platform
09:26

High-throughput Protein Expression Generator Using a Microfluidic Platform

Published on: August 23, 2012

11.7K
Microfluidic Mixers for Studying Protein Folding
12:42

Microfluidic Mixers for Studying Protein Folding

Published on: April 10, 2012

15.0K
A Rapid and Quantitative Fluorimetric Method for Protein-Targeting Small Molecule Drug Screening
08:34

A Rapid and Quantitative Fluorimetric Method for Protein-Targeting Small Molecule Drug Screening

Published on: October 16, 2015

10.0K

Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Protein dynamics
  • Biophysical chemistry

Background:

  • Proteins can transiently exist in unfolded states, risking irreversible damage.
  • Kinetic stability is crucial for protein function and lifetime, but difficult to measure.
  • Current methods for measuring protein unfolding rates are technically challenging and not high-throughput.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a novel microfluidic platform for high-throughput measurement of protein unfolding rates.
  • To enable parallel characterization of a large number of protein variants.
  • To investigate the kinetic stability of proteins and the impact of mutations.

Main Methods:

  • Development of SPARKfold (Simultaneous Proteolysis Assay Revealing Kinetics of Folding), a microfluidic platform.
  • On-chip native proteolysis to measure unfolding rate constants.
  • Parallel expression, purification, and analysis of over 1000 protein variants, including 31 dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) orthologs.

Main Results:

  • SPARKfold successfully measured unfolding rate constants for 1,104 protein samples in parallel.
  • SPARKfold measurements showed high accuracy, correlating with traditional techniques over a 150-fold range.
  • Analysis of mutant kinetic effects provided insights into protein folding transition states and pathways.

Conclusions:

  • SPARKfold is a powerful tool for rapid characterization of protein variants and their kinetic stability.
  • The platform can dissect the nature of the unfolding transition state.
  • Future applications include identifying mutations causing misfolding and designing kinetically hyperstable proteins for industrial use.