Computer system modelling muscle work

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Skubiszak, Ludmila | Kowalczyk, Leszek

Affiliations: Institute of Biocybernetics and Biomedical Engineering, Polish Academy of Sciences, 02-109 Warsaw, Ks. Trojdena 4, Poland

Abstract: In the work, an original computer system, called Muscle, is described. The Muscle allowed modelling of the whole thick filament with different arrangements of the myosin tails and myosin heads. Computer simulation and animation have revealed that only the model of the thick filament with asymmetrical configuration of the crossbridges has 3-fold rotational symmetry and assures matching between many thousands specific binding-sites on myosin heads and actin monomers. The Muscle delivered a number of arguments that the hypothesis of near parallel packing of the myosin tails, as well as oar-like or lever-arm-like work of the myosin crossbridges, is unfounded. We have presented advantages of the computer simulation in studies of complicated 3D molecular objects especially when direct observation is technically impossible.

DOI: 10.3233/THC-1998-62-306

Journal: Technology and Health Care, vol. 6, no. 2-3, pp. 139-149, 1998