Elastically coupled molecular motors

We study the influence of filament elasticity on the motion of collective molecular motors. It is found that for a backbone flexibility exceeding a characteristic value (motor stiffness divided through the mean displacement between attached motors), the ability of motors to produce force reduces as compared to rigidly coupled motors, while the maximum velocity remains unchanged. The force-velocity-relation in two different analytic approximations is calculated and compared with Monte-Carlo simulations. Finally, we extend our model by introducing motors with a strain-dependent detachment rate. A remarkable crossover from the nearly hyperbolic shape of the Hill curve for stiff backbones to a linear force-velocity relation for very elastic backbones is found. With realistic model parameters we show that the backbone flexibility plays no role under physiological conditions in muscles, but it should be observable in certain in vitro assays. Received: 27 November 1997 / Revised: 20 February 1998 / Accepted: 27 March 1998     

Activity inAplysia buccal ganglia characterized by signal processing techniques

Summary Two procedures aimed at a synthetic, quantitative characterization of the integrative activity in a small system of nerve cells are proposed, and applications to the buccal ganglion of the molluskAplysia are described. Both methods are based on cross-correlation evaluation. The first method processes intracellular signals simultaneously recorded from pairs of neurones, and reveals and measures the occurrence of shared synaptic input. The second method processes extracellular multiunit signals recorded by two cuff electrodes placed around one nerve, and evaluates the impulse traffic, subdivided according to direction and speed of propagation. The outcome of both methods may be used to represent the state of the system, and may provide a basis to further studies on its dynamics. Paper presented at the International Workshop ?Fluctuations in Physics and Biology: Stochastic Resonance, Signal Processing and Related Phenomena?, Elba, 5–10 June 1994.     

自忆模式中差分格式的稳定性研究

基于大气运动是一种不可逆过程的观点，引进了忆及过去时次资料的记忆函数，导出热传导的自忆性方程，研究了方程分别取Richardson和DuFort-Frankel格式，回溯阶p取1时的稳定性.探讨了多时刻模式中数值积分有时发散的问题，揭示了由过去时次资料动态求取记忆函数，改变了原定设计的差分格式，且它是一个时间平滑因子的本质. 关键词： 回溯阶差分格式 多时次 稳定性 记忆性     

Retrospective time integral scheme and its applications to the advection equation

To put more information into a difference scheme of a differential equation for making an accurate prediction, a new kind of time integration scheme, known as the retrospective (RT) scheme, is proposed on the basis of the memorial dynamics. Stability criteria of the scheme for an advection equation in certain conditions are derived mathematically. The computations for the advection equation have been conducted with its RT scheme. It is shown that the accuracy of the scheme is much higher than that of the leapfrog (LF) difference scheme. The project supported by the National Key Program for Developing Basic Sciences (G1999043408 and G1998040901-1) and the National Natural Sciences Foundation of China (40175024 and 40035010)     

Sustained oscillatory noise in the light responses of a retinal neuron

Summary In the retina of the turtle, prolonged illumination of the receptive field surrond can lead to the appearance of sustained oscillatory responses in horizontal cells. In most cells the oscillations consist of a main component of 40–50 Hz frequency modulated by slower waves. The experimental evidence suggests that these responses are due to the activation of the feeback circuit linking cone photoreceptors and horizontal cells in the vertebrate retina. Paper presented at the International Workshop ?Fluctuations in Physics and Biology: Stochastic Resonance, Signal Processing and Related Phenomena?, Elba, 5–10 June 1994.