Coupling of Two Motor Proteins: a New Motor Can Move Faster

TL;DR

This paper presents a stochastic model of coupled motor proteins showing that interaction between two motor domains can enhance overall speed, with applications to helicase RecBCD motion.

Contribution

It introduces an analytical model for coupled motor proteins demonstrating how interaction can increase velocity beyond individual capabilities.

Findings

Coupling can produce faster motor movement than single motors.

Analytical solutions relate motor velocity to interaction potential.

Application to helicase RecBCD shows practical relevance.

Abstract

We study the effect of a coupling between two motor domains in highly-processive motor protein complexes. A simple stochastic discrete model, in which the two parts of the protein molecule interact through some energy potential, is presented. The exact analytical solutions for the dynamic properties of the combined motor species, such as the velocity and dispersion, are derived in terms of the properties of free individual motor domains and the interaction potential. It is shown that the coupling between the motor domains can create a more efficient motor protein that can move faster than individual particles. The results are applied to analyze the motion of helicase RecBCD molecules.