Traffic of molecular motors: from theory to experiments

TL;DR

This paper reviews theoretical models and experimental approaches to understanding intracellular transport by molecular motors, emphasizing traffic phenomena, model generalizations, and potential single-molecule experiments in living cells.

Contribution

It introduces generalized lattice gas models for molecular motor traffic and discusses experimental strategies to measure motor density and traffic jams.

Findings

Feasibility of single-molecule experiments to measure motor density.

Potential to locate traffic jams using tracer particles.

Preliminary experiments in living cells suggest practical applications.

Abstract

Intracellular transport along microtubules or actin filaments, powered by molecular motors such as kinesins, dyneins or myosins, has been recently modeled using one-dimensional driven lattice gases. We discuss some generalizations of these models, that include extended particles and defects. We investigate the feasibility of single molecule experiments aiming to measure the average motor density and to locate the position of traffic jams by mean of a tracer particle. Finally, we comment on preliminary single molecule experiments performed in living cells.