Mechanical Transport by Molecular Motors:

how do we control traffic in cells?

Very small cargo moving along very narrow roads.

Tiny polymers crowd surfing.

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Research focuss:  team work by protein machines, as controlled by chemical energy, disease-relevant roadblock (tau), road condition (microtubule structural defect), and mechanical coupling between motors (lipid bilayers).

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      Team work:   "Quantitative Determination of the Probability of Multiple-Motor Transport in Bead-Based Assays",  Q. Li, S.J. King, A. Gopinathan, J. Xu, Biophys. J., 111, 2720 (2016)​  PDF
      ​"Cooperative Protofilament Switching Emerges from Inter-Motor Interference in Multiple-Motor Transport", Sci. Rep., 4, 7255 (2014) Jounal Link

      Road condition:   "Impact of microtubule defect on kinesin-based transport",  W. Liang, Q. Li, K M Faysal, S.J. King, A. Gopinathan, J. Xu, Biophys. J., 110, 2229 (2016) PDF
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      Roadblock tau:  "Interplay between Velocity and Travel Distance of Kinesin-based Transport in the Presence of Tau",  Biophys. J., 105, L23 (2013) PDF

      Chemical energy:   "Tuning Multiple Motor Travel Via Single Motor Velocity", Traffic, 13, 1198 (2012) PDF, Supplement  

​Qiaochu Michael Li

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Active Matter, Self-Assembly

Joseph Lopes

"around the world, around the world"
Crowd surfing polymers loop onto themselves.

"Understanding the role of transport velocity in biomotor-powered microtubule spool assembly",  
​A.J. Tan, D.E. Chapman, L.S. Hirst, J. Xu, RSC Adv., 6, 79143 (2016)  Journal Link ​ PDF