3P145 Control of microtubule trajectory within an electric field by altering surface charge density(11. Molecular motor,Poster,The 52nd Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society of Japan(BSJ2014))

A challenge for using microtubules (MTs) driven by kinesin motors in functional nanosystems is to control their direction of movement. A method was developed to guide kinesin-propelled MTs in multiple directions under an electric field by designing a charged surface of MT minus ends labeled with dsDNA via a streptavidin-biotin interaction. Experimental trajectories were in good agreement with values predicted from measured electrophoretic mobilities. As the effective charge of labeled DNA molecules matches to that of freely dispersed DNA molecules, MT trajectory can be estimated even by selecting labeling molecules with known charges. Our molecular design and prediction methodology demonstrate the feasibility of using molecular sorters driven by motor proteins.