Multi-scale Computational Modeling of Tubulin-Tubulin Lateral Interaction (Biophysical Journal)

Microtubules are multi-stranded polymers in eukaryotic cells that support key cellular functions such as chromosome segregation, motor-based cargo transport, and maintenance of cell polarity. Microtubules self-assemble via `dynamic instability,` where the dynamic plus ends switch stochastically between alternating phases of polymerization and depolymerization. A key question in the field is what are the atomistic origins of this switching, i.e. what is different between the GTP- and GDP-tubulin states that enables microtubule growth and shortening, respectively? More generally, a major challenge in biology is how to connect theoretical frameworks across length-time scales, from atoms to cellular behavior.