The advent of single molecule biophysical measurements in conjunction with advances instructural biology makes it possible to construct mechanical models of a range of biological phenomena. The aim of the work proposed here is to investigate two broad classes of problems: i) the mechanics of DNA packing both in viruses and eucaryotic cells and ii) the physics of mechanically activated ion channels. The objective of this work is to link continuum and atomistic models of these systems with experiments aimed at probing their specific mechanical action. In particular, we will examine both the packing of DNA in viruses and the process of ejection of that DNA during the viral infection process. In addition, we will study the way in which the DNA sequence dictates its elastic properties and how this in turn affects the self-assembly process of the eucaryotic chromosome. Our efforts on mechanically activated membrane channels will be centered on examining the coupling between tension in the lipid bilayer membrane and conformational changes in the ion channel.
