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Electrostatic potential around actin

T Ando1, N Kobayashi, E Munekata

  • 1Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Kanazawa University, Japan.

Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
|January 1, 1993
PubMed
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Muscle contraction may involve electrostatic forces between actin and myosin. Experiments suggest actin develops an electric field during contraction, influencing myosin head interaction and generating sliding force.

Area of Science:

  • Biophysics
  • Muscle Physiology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Muscle contraction is traditionally explained by the sliding filament theory.
  • The precise molecular mechanisms, particularly the role of electrostatic forces, remain areas of investigation.
  • Understanding the energetic and electrostatic interactions between actin and myosin is crucial for elucidating muscle function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the hypothesis that electrostatic forces between actin and myosin drive muscle tension.
  • To explore how charged actin generates an electric field influencing myosin head interaction.
  • To experimentally examine the electrostatic environment of actin in solution and muscle fibers.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized diffusion-enhanced fluorescence energy transfer (DEFRET) to probe electrostatic conditions.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Synthesized terbium (Tb) labeled actin probes (Tb-DTPA-phalloin and Tb-DTPA-maleimide).
  • Employed rhodamine B derivatives with varying charges as energy transfer acceptors to infer electric potential.

    • Main Results:

    • Actin labeled at Cys-374 exhibited a negative electric potential, which was neutralized upon myosin S-1 binding.
    • Phalloin-bound actin also showed negative potential, slightly reduced by S-1 binding.
    • In muscle fibers, actin's negative potential was reduced during the transition from rigor to an active state, suggesting an active-state-specific electric potential.

    Conclusions:

    • Experimental evidence supports the role of electrostatic interactions in muscle contraction.
    • Actin appears to generate an electric field that is modulated by myosin binding and the muscle's active state.
    • These findings suggest a novel electrostatic component contributing to the force generation mechanism in muscle.