Search arXiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/arXiv

arXiv · 2205.03510

Fluidification of entanglements by a DNA bending protein

Yair A. G. Fosado·Jamieson Howard·Simon Weir·Agnes Noy·Mark C Leake·Davide Michieletto
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

In spite of the nanoscale and single-molecule insights into how nucleoid associated proteins (NAPs) interact with DNA, their role in modulating the mesoscale viscoelasticity of the entangled genome in vivo has been overlooked so far. By combining microrheology and molecular dynamics simulation we find that the important NAP called Integration Host Factor (IHF) lowers the viscosity of entangled $λ$DNA 20-fold at physiological concentrations and stoichiometries. We argue that IHF may act as a "genomic fluidiser", reducing the effective viscosity of the nucleoid $\sim$200-fold. Our results suggest a previously unappreciated key role of IHF in regulating DNA dynamics and re-organisation in vivo

Explore related subjects

cond-mat.soft

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Yair A. G. Fosado, Jamieson Howard, Simon Weir, Agnes Noy, Mark C Leake, Davide Michieletto. 2023-02-07. Fluidification of entanglements by a DNA bending protein. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.130.058203

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Deformation and organization of droplet-encapsulated soft beads

Many biological, culinary, and engineering processes lead to the co-encapsulation of several soft particles within a liquid interface. In these situations the particles are bound together by the capillary forces that deform them and influence their biological or rheological properties. Here, we introduce an experimental approach to encapsulate a controlled number of soft beads within aqueous droplets in oil. These droplet-encapsulated gels are manipulated in a deformable microfluidic device to merge them and modify the liquid fraction. In the dry limit the contact surface between the hydrogels is found to be determined by the elastocapillary number $E_c$, with the contact radius following a $E_c^{1/3}$ dependence, indicating that the deformation increases for soft or small particles. When multiple beads are co-encapsulated within a single droplet they can be arranged into linear or three-dimensional aggregates that remain at a local energy minimum.

cond-mat.soft↗
arXiv2026

Flexoelectricity-driven softening of bend elasticity leads to spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking in a polar fluid

The origin of the recently observed spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking in polar fluids composed of achiral molecules is an unsolved problem, raising fundamental questions about how heliconical structures emerge in such systems. Here, we investigate the pretransitional fluctuations leading to the formation of the spontaneously chiral twist-bend ferroelectric nematic phase using dielectric spectroscopy, light scattering, and small-angle X-ray scattering. We observe simultaneous softening of the bend elastic constant and the emergence of a collective dielectric mode on approaching the transition. By developing a theoretical model, we show that these phenomena are signatures of a flexoelectricity-driven transition arising from the coupling between electric polarization and bend deformation.

cond-mat.soft↗
arXiv2026

Taylor dispersion in a soft tube

Diffusion of a solute along a tube is enhanced by hydrodynamic flow, a phenomenon known as Taylor dispersion. In microfluidic applications, the compliance of the tube boundaries modifies the hydrodynamic flow and thus solutal transport. Here, we develop the theory of solutal dispersion in a soft, axisymmetric tube where the tube walls respond to the hydrodynamic pressure through a Winkler response. By deriving the modified macro-transport equation for the solutal concentration dynamics based on multiple-time-scale analysis, we explore the influence of softness on solutal transport for steady and pulsatile configurations. Our main finding is that softness enhances the effective advection velocity and dispersion coefficient, which might have practical implication in biology and microfluidic technology.

cond-mat.soft↗