Brownian motor analysis and its application to nanosystems

Abstract

On the molecular scale biological machines of the size approximately 0.01 /spl mu/m perform transport guaranteeing functionality of living cells. Thermal and quantum fluctuations are the major source of energy for such minuscule machines. They transport biological materials and ions, build proteins, attain motility of the cell, etc. Fluctuation-driven transport, mapped by the Brownian ratchet principle, gives us the understanding of how electrochemical energy is converted into mechanical energy. The importance of Brownian motion is its versatility in explaining a wide range of biological processes that occur at the molecular level. This paper reports model developments, simulation, and analysis of different mechanisms in nanobiomotors. One example is kinesin, a protein molecule that is in motion along microtubules in living cells and transports material. Another example is myosin which is active when a muscle contracts. The force generation is a topic of current research. How do molecular motors behave in a noisy environment? One model suggests that the motors use the random Brownian motion to do work.