Estimation of soluble macromolecule concentrations in the cytoplasmic compartment

Range Table - link
Organism Bacteria Escherichia coli
Reference Zimmerman SB, Trach SO. Estimation of macromolecule concentrations and excluded volume effects for the cytoplasm of Escherichia coli. J Mol Biol. 1991 Dec 5222(3):599-620.PubMed ID1748995
Method The very high concentration of macromolecules within cells can potentially have an overwhelming effect on the thermodynamic activity of cellular components because of excluded volume effects. To estimate the magnitudes of such effects, researchers made an experimental study of the cytoplasm of Escherichia coli. Parameters from cells and cell extracts are used to calculate approximate activity coefficients for cytoplasmic conditions. Macromolecule concentrations in cytoplasm are obtained from analyses of extracts by applying a correction for the dilution that occurs during extraction. That factor is determined from experiments based upon the known impermeability of the cytoplasmic volume to sucrose in intact E. coli.
Entered by Uri M
ID 104492