DPG Phi
Verhandlungen
Verhandlungen
DPG

Berlin 2024 – wissenschaftliches Programm

Bereiche | Tage | Auswahl | Suche | Aktualisierungen | Downloads | Hilfe

BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 6: Bacterial Biophysics I

BP 6.8: Vortrag

Montag, 18. März 2024, 17:15–17:30, H 1028

Using simulations to investigate the mechanical properties of peptidoglycan — •Marco Mauri1, Abimbola F. Adedeji Olulana2, Jamie K Hobbs2, Sheila Hoshyaripour1, and Rosalind J Allen11FSU Jena - Balance of the Microverse — 2University of Sheffield

In bacteria, the peptidoglycan (PG) cell wall consists of a mesh of glycan strands crosslinked by short peptides. PG counteracts the internal turgor pressure and its integrity is necessary to prevent cell lysis; indeed, many antibiotics target PG synthesis. The mechanical properties of the PG mesh are important for understanding the biophysics of cell growth, cell shape and antibiotic action: yet these properties are hard to measure experimentally.

Here, we present a coarse-grained molecular simulation model for the PG mesh in Gram negative bacteria such as E. coli. Inspired by previous works, we model PG as a network of beads and springs governed by a system of overdamped Langevin equations. However, our model incorporates real PG configurations, informed by AFM and biochemical measurements.

We use dynamical simulations to study how a patch of PG responds to biochemical perturbations. We predict the mechanical effects of antibiotic action via uncontrolled hydrolase enzymes, and explore the role of biophysical properties of the mesh, such as connectivity, on mechanical stability. Our work provides a connection between the molecular-scale PG configuration and the macro-scale mechanical properties of the cell wall.

Keywords: peptidoglycan; molecular simulation; antibiotic; cell wall; AFM

100% | Mobil-Ansicht | English Version | Kontakt/Impressum/Datenschutz
DPG-Physik > DPG-Verhandlungen > 2024 > Berlin