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Measuring the Kinetic and Mechanical Properties of Non-processive Myosins Using Optical Tweezers

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Optical Tweezers

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1486))

Abstract

The myosin superfamily of molecular motors utilizes energy from ATP hydrolysis to generate force and motility along actin filaments in a diverse array of cellular processes. These motors are structurally, kinetically, and mechanically tuned to their specific molecular roles in the cell. Optical trapping techniques have played a central role in elucidating the mechanisms by which myosins generate force and in exposing the remarkable diversity of myosin functions. Here, we present thorough methods for measuring and analyzing interactions between actin and non-processive myosins using optical trapping techniques.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to acknowledge grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01GM057247 and P01GM087253 to E.M.O. and R00HL123623 to M.J.G.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, The Pennsylvania Muscle Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Michael J. Greenberg, Henry Shuman & E. Michael Ostap

  2. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Washington University School of Medicine, 660 S. Euclid Ave., Campus Box 8231, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA

    Michael J. Greenberg

Authors
  1. Michael J. Greenberg
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  2. Henry Shuman
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  3. E. Michael Ostap
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael J. Greenberg .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy and Structural Biology & Gruss-Lipper Biophotonics Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA

    Arne Gennerich

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Greenberg, M.J., Shuman, H., Ostap, E.M. (2017). Measuring the Kinetic and Mechanical Properties of Non-processive Myosins Using Optical Tweezers. In: Gennerich, A. (eds) Optical Tweezers. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1486. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6421-5_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6421-5_19

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-6419-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-6421-5

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