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Updated: Aug 24, 2026

Visualization of ATP Synthase Dimers in Mitochondria by Electron Cryo-tomography
Published on: September 14, 2014
Intramolecular rotation in ATP synthase: dynamic and crystallographic studies on thermophilic F1
1Department of Biochemistry, Jichi Medical School, Tochigi, Japan. ykagawa@jichi.ac.jp
Abstract:
A single molecule of ATP synthase (F0F1) is by itself a rotary motor, the smallest ever found, and this biomotor is driven by an electrochemical potential of H+ (delta microH+). F0F1 is composed of an ion-conducting portion (F0) and a catalytic portion (F1). The major breakthroughs in studies on the mechanochemical coupling have been the direct observation of the rotation of a stable alpha 3 beta 3 gamma complex of thermophilic F1 (TF1), and X-ray crystallography of the alpha 3 beta 3 gamma portion of mitochondrial F1 (MF1) and the alpha 3 beta 3 oligomer of TF1. This review focuses on the dynamics of TF1, demonstrated by a crucial experiment. The torque of the rotation was estimated to be 42 pN.nm from the delta microH+ and frictional force. Important unsolved problems are the crystallography of F0, elastic energy conversion, and the stator and rotor of this biomotor.
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