Gel electrophoresis has been used to fractionate macromolecules for studies in all fields of biochemistry. However, the sieving of gels during electrophoresis is not understood physically. Sieving can be used to determine the size of spheres and, in some cases, the molecular weight of random coils. Drs. Serwer and Griess propose to: (a) obtain and use data for the testing of previously proposed hypotheses that quantitatively describe the sieving of gels and (b) determine the effect of a particles's shape on its sieving during gel electrophoresis. These objectives are components of a research program for understanding the assembly and purposeful motion of macromolecules, using bacteriophages as model systems. It is anticipated that achieving these objectives will also serve as a foundation for utilization of gel electrophoresis in several areas of biochemistry, microbiology, colloid chemistry and cellular biology.
