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Science 12 May 2006:
Vol. 312. no. 5775, p. 809
DOI: 10.1126/science.312.5775.809g
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For small fluidic and reactor systems, one solution for controlling the transport of reagents and products would be to incorporate biological motors. Previous studies have shown that microtubules can be chemically modified to carry cargo, but controlling their motion is still a challenge. Van den Heuvel et al. (p. 910; see the Perspective by Hess) studied the behavior of microtubules in constant electric fields. With detailed experiments and theory, they show that individual microtubules driven by the motor protein kinesin across the surface of micrometer-sized fluidic channels can be driven in a desired direction and that the sorting occurs with high efficiency.




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