Gel biomachine based on muscle proteins

Summary We have created an ATP-fueled soft gel machine constructed from muscle proteins. Chemically cross-linked gels of the polymer-actin complex of the length several decades times the length of native actin filament (F-actin) move on myosin-coated surface with a velocity as high as that of native F-actin, by coupling to ATP hydrolysis. The motility observed in muscle protein-gels suggests that one might construct a soft machine fueled by chemical energy using actin and myosin molecules as elements. We have investigated the growth process of polymer-actin complexes and the correlation between the polarity and the motility of polymer-actin complex gels.