Comments on: Nature’s nanotechnology motors to inspire future machines http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2449 examining transformative technology Wed, 03 Apr 2013 18:23:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: Anonymous http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2449#comment-186268 Anonymous Tue, 27 Mar 2007 16:41:11 +0000 http://www.foresight.org/nanodot/?p=2449#comment-186268 Yes... These molecular motors are facinating. One of the interesting aspects of these motors are their ability to pack nucleic acids into their capsids to near crystalline density. For example the Bacillus subtilis phage ϕ29 DNA packaging motor can generate forces in excess of 50pN. When packaging is complete the intracapsid pressure can be as much as 60 atmospheres. It has been suggested that this pressure is used to inject their nucleic acid into host cells. This motor is amoungst the stongest known... capable of generating ~ 25 more force than that of myosin. Now, what I would love to do is play with these motors on chip... for example for pumping or for sequencing... gotta love nature! Eoin Yes… These molecular motors are facinating. One of the interesting aspects of these motors are their ability to pack nucleic acids into their capsids to near crystalline density. For example the Bacillus subtilis phage ϕ29 DNA packaging motor can generate forces in excess of 50pN. When packaging is complete the intracapsid pressure can be as much as 60 atmospheres. It has been suggested that this pressure is used to inject their nucleic acid into host cells. This motor is amoungst the stongest known… capable of generating ~ 25 more force than that of myosin.

Now, what I would love to do is play with these motors on chip… for example for pumping or for sequencing… gotta love nature!

Eoin

]]>