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Science 20 August 2004:
Vol. 305. no. 5687, pp. 1147 - 1150
DOI: 10.1126/science.1097640
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Reports

Local Nanomechanical Motion of the Cell Wall of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Andrew E. Pelling, Sadaf Sehati, Edith B. Gralla, Joan S. Valentine, James K. Gimzewski*

We demonstrate that the cell wall of living Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast) exhibits local temperature-dependent nanomechanical motion at characteristic frequencies. The periodic motions in the range of 0.8 to 1.6 kHz with amplitudes of ~3 nm were measured using the cantilever of an atomic force microscope (AFM). Exposure of the cells to a metabolic inhibitor causes the periodic motion to cease. From the strong frequency dependence on temperature, we derive an activation energy of 58 kJ/mol, which is consistent with the cell's metabolism involving molecular motors such as kinesin, dynein, and myosin. The magnitude of the forces observed (~10 nN) suggests concerted nanomechanical activity is operative in the cell.

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 607 Charles E. Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: gim{at}chem.ucla.edu.

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)