Wolf Christopher, Mofrad Mohammad R K
Molecular Cell Biomechanics Laboratory, Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA.
Biophys J. 2008 Aug;95(4):2073-85. doi: 10.1529/biophysj.108.130336. Epub 2008 May 16.
The basic structure of the nuclear pore complex (NPC), conserved across almost all organisms from yeast to humans, persists in featuring an octagonal symmetry involving the nucleoporins that constitute the NPC ring. In this article, we seek to understand and evaluate the potential biomechanical reasons for this eightfold symmetry. Our analytical investigation shows that the eightfold symmetry maximizes the bending stiffness of each of the eight NPC spokes while our computational analyses identify the most likely deformation modes, frequencies, and associated kinetic energies of the NPC. These modes have energies close to other published findings using membrane analysis of the nuclear membrane pore opening, and deformation states in agreement with experimental observations. A better understanding of NPC mechanics is essential for characterizing the nucleocytoplasmic transport, which has a central importance in cell biology.
核孔复合体（NPC）的基本结构在从酵母到人类的几乎所有生物体中都是保守的，其特征仍然是由构成NPC环的核孔蛋白组成的八角形对称结构。在本文中，我们试图理解和评估这种八重对称性背后潜在的生物力学原因。我们的分析研究表明，八重对称性使八个NPC辐条各自的弯曲刚度最大化，而我们的计算分析则确定了NPC最可能的变形模式、频率和相关动能。这些模式的能量与其他利用核膜孔开口的膜分析得出的已发表结果相近，且变形状态与实验观察结果一致。更好地理解NPC力学对于表征核质运输至关重要，而核质运输在细胞生物学中具有核心重要性。
