Recent progress on the mechanics of sharply bent DNA

作     者：PeiWen Cong Jie Yan 

作者机构：Mechanobiology Institute National University of Singapore Singapore-MIT Alliance National University of Singapore Department of Physics National University of Singapore BioSystems and Micromechanics IRG Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology Centre Centre for BioImaging Sciences National University of Singapore 

出 版 物：《Science China(Physics,Mechanics & Astronomy)》 (中国科学：物理学、力学、天文学（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2016年第59卷第8期

页      面：1-8页

核心收录：

学科分类：0710[理学-生物学] 071010[理学-生物化学与分子生物学] 080503[工学-材料加工工程] 081704[工学-应用化学] 07[理学] 08[工学] 0817[工学-化学工程与技术] 0805[工学-材料科学与工程（可授工学、理学学位）] 0802[工学-机械工程] 080201[工学-机械制造及其自动化] 

基　　金：supported by the Mechanobiology Institute at National University of Singapore and Singapore Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund Tier 2 (Grant No. MOE2013-T2-1-154) 

主　　题：DNA mechanics DNA elasticity DNA nicks molecular dynamics simulation 

摘      要：Despite extensive studies on the mechanics of DNA under external constrains, such as tension, torsion, and bending, several important aspects have remained poorly understood. One biologically important example is the mechanics of DNA under sharp bending conditions, which has been debated for a decade without thorough comprehension. The debate is about the interesting phenomenon raised from a series of different experiments: sharply bent DNA has a surprisingly high apparent bending flexibility that deviates from the canonical bending elasticity of DNA. This finding has motivated various theoretical models, which mainly incorporate the excitation of mechanical defects inside severely bent DNA molecules. Here, we review the recent progress on the understanding of the mechanics of sharply bent DNA and provide our view on this important question by interrogating the theoretical foundation of these experimental measurements.