Substructure and Communication in Myosin and Actin

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Muscle contraction requires a cyclic interaction between myosin heads and actin. According to current views this process involves some changes in the geometry or the structure of the actomyosin complex during the force generating step of the contractile cycle. The goal of this project is to arrive at a detailed description of the structures and functions of myosin and actin, their interaction with each other and the regulation of this interaction. Most models for muscle contraction show that the force in a muscle cell is generated through cyclic interaction of myosin crossbridges with actin. Although the molecular details of this process are largely unknown, impressive progress has been made in the recent past in elucidating the structures of myosin and actin.