1. Lecture: Motor Proteins in Single-Molecule Experiments
Motor proteins are ubiquitous enzymes specialized in generating force
and motion for a
multitude of dynamic processes in living organisms. This lecture will
first introduce
techniques used in single-molecule in vitro motility assays focusing
mainly on optical
tweezers as well as single-molecule fluorescence experiments. These
techniques are
widely used for studying cytoskeletal motor proteins of the myosin
and kinesin families.
Then I will present fundamental experimental results on selected systems
and will
introduce and discuss concepts such as mechano-chemical coupling, power
strokes and
steps, processivity and cooperativity. In the end I will point out
where the current
challenges lie, also with an eye on the experimental limitations and
possible future
developments.
2. Lecture: The Dynamics of Semiflexible Polymer Networks
Construction materials used by cells are commonly optimized by evolution
for their tasks
and can often fulfill a multitude of different tasks in complex arrangements
and
interactions within cells. In this lecture I will focus on the "semiflexible"
polymer
systems forming the cytoskeleton of cells, which has both passive and
active structural
tasks. Semiflexible polymers are somewhat exotic systems in polymer
science, and I will
explain some of their characteristic properties. I will then concentrate
on what dynamic
properties of such polymers can be measured in microscopic experiments,
spanning the
range from single strands to entangled networks, introducing a group
of techniques
labeled microrheology.