Before revision: Fluctuations are ubiquitous and prominent in microscopic systems. Observations in vitro have confirmed motor proteins are subjected to thermal fluctuations. The walking molecular motor, kinesin-1 (hereafter called kinesin), which carries vesicles on microtubules in cells, has long been proposed to utilize thermal fluctuations to make directed movements. In addition to thermal fluctuations, living cells actively generate non-thermal fluctuations using energy derived from metabolic activities. However, it is not clear whether and how these active fluctuations affect the function of kinesins in living cells. To investigate the effect of active fluctuations on single kinesin molecules , we used an in vitro measurement system to apply actively fluctuating external forces (i.e. noise), artificially mimicking intracellular active fluctuations.
After revision: The movement of single kinesin molecules , we used an in vitro measurement system to apply actively fluctuating external forces (i.e. noise), artificially mimicking intracellular active fluctuations.