| Literature DB >> 18573087 |
Huan-Xiang Zhou1, Germán Rivas, Allen P Minton.
Abstract
Expected and observed effects of volume exclusion on the free energy of rigid and flexible macromolecules in crowded and confined systems, and consequent effects of crowding and confinement on macromolecular reaction rates and equilibria are summarized. Findings from relevant theoretical/simulation and experimental literature published from 2004 onward are reviewed. Additional complexity arising from the heterogeneity of local environments in biological media, and the presence of nonspecific interactions between macromolecules over and above steric repulsion, are discussed. Theoretical and experimental approaches to the characterization of crowding- and confinement-induced effects in systems approaching the complexity of living organisms are suggested.Mesh:
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Year: 2008 PMID: 18573087 PMCID: PMC2826134 DOI: 10.1146/annurev.biophys.37.032807.125817
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Annu Rev Biophys ISSN: 1936-122X Impact factor: 12.981