Nonequilibrium fluctuations and mechanochemical couplings of a molecular motor

Abstract

We investigate theoretically the violations of Einstein and Onsager relations and the thermodynamic efficiency for a single processive motor operating far from equilibrium using an extension of the two-state model introduced by Kafri et al.. With the aid of the Fluctuation Theorem, we analyze the general features of these violations and this efficiency and link them to mechanochemical couplings of motors. In particular, an analysis of the experimental data of kinesin using our framework leads to interesting predictions that may serve as a guide for future experiments. © 2007 The American Physical Society.