TITLE: The effects of macromolecular crowding on the mechanical stability of proteins

SPEAKER: Professor Guoliang Yang,

TIME: Thursday Nov. 17, 2005 at 4:00 PM

PLACE: George P. Williams, Jr. Lecture Hall, (Olin 101)

Macromolecular crowding, a universal phenomenon in the cellular environments, can significantly affect the thermodynamic and kinetic properties of proteins. We have used a single molecule method to investigate the effects of macromolecular crowding on the forces required to unfold ubiquitin molecules, and found that the unfolding forces increased as the solution became crowded by the addition of dextran molecules. A theoretical model based on the scaled particle theory and the concept of depletion forces was introduced to provide physical insights into the observed macromolecular crowding effects. Many proteins experience mechanical stresses and perform mechanical functions in the cell, macromolecular crowding may also serve to modulate these cellular processes.

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