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Biophysics

February 15, 2024

Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study biological phenomena.[1][2][3] Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization, from molecular to organismic and populations. Biophysical research shares significant overlap with biochemistry, molecular biology, physical chemistry, physiology, nanotechnology, bioengineering, computational biology, biomechanics, developmental biology and systems biology.

Kinesin uses protein domain dynamics on nanoscales to "walk" along a microtubule.

The term biophysics was originally introduced by Karl Pearson in 1892.[4][5] The term biophysics is also regularly used in academia to indicate the study of the physical quantities (e.g. electric current, temperature, stress, entropy) in biological systems. Other biological sciences also perform research on the biophysical properties of living organisms including molecular biology, cell biology, chemical biology, and biochemistry.

Overview edit

Molecular biophysics typically addresses biological questions similar to those in biochemistry and molecular biology, seeking to find the physical underpinnings of biomolecular phenomena. Scientists in this field conduct research concerned with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interactions between DNA, RNA and protein biosynthesis, as well as how these interactions are regulated. A great variety of techniques are used to answer these questions.

 
A ribosome is a biological machine that utilizes protein dynamics

Fluorescent imaging techniques, as well as electron microscopy, x-ray crystallography, NMR spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and small-angle scattering (SAS) both with X-rays and neutrons (SAXS/SANS) are often used to visualize structures of biological significance. Protein dynamics can be observed by neutron spin echo spectroscopy. Conformational change in structure can be measured using techniques such as dual polarisation interferometry, circular dichroism, SAXS and SANS. Direct manipulation of molecules using optical tweezers or AFM, can also be used to monitor biological events where forces and distances are at the nanoscale. Molecular biophysicists often consider complex biological events as systems of interacting entities which can be understood e.g. through statistical mechanics, thermodynamics and chemical kinetics. By drawing knowledge and experimental techniques from a wide variety of disciplines, biophysicists are often able to directly observe, model or even manipulate the structures and interactions of individual molecules or complexes of molecules.

In addition to traditional (i.e. molecular and cellular) biophysical topics like structural biology or enzyme kinetics, modern biophysics encompasses an extraordinarily broad range of research, from bioelectronics to quantum biology involving both experimental and theoretical tools. It is becoming increasingly common for biophysicists to apply the models and experimental techniques derived from physics, as well as mathematics and statistics, to larger systems such as tissues, organs,[6] populations[7] and ecosystems. Biophysical models are used extensively in the study of electrical conduction in single neurons, as well as neural circuit analysis in both tissue and whole brain.

Medical physics, a branch of biophysics, is any application of physics to medicine or healthcare, ranging from radiology to microscopy and nanomedicine. For example, physicist Richard Feynman theorized about the future of nanomedicine. He wrote about the idea of a medical use for biological machines (see nanomachines). Feynman and Albert Hibbs suggested that certain repair machines might one day be reduced in size to the point that it would be possible to (as Feynman put it) "swallow the doctor". The idea was discussed in Feynman's 1959 essay There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom.[8]

History edit

The studies of Luigi Galvani (1737–1798) laid groundwork for the later field of biophysics. Some of the earlier studies in biophysics were conducted in the 1840s by a group known as the Berlin school of physiologists. Among its members were pioneers such as Hermann von Helmholtz, Ernst Heinrich Weber, Carl F. W. Ludwig, and Johannes Peter Müller.[9]

William T. Bovie (1882–1958) is credited as a leader of the field's further development in the mid-20th century. He was a leader in developing electrosurgery.

The popularity of the field rose when the book What Is Life? by Erwin Schrödinger was published. Since 1957, biophysicists have organized themselves into the Biophysical Society which now has about 9,000 members over the world.[10]

Some authors such as Robert Rosen criticize biophysics on the ground that the biophysical method does not take into account the specificity of biological phenomena.[11]

Focus as a subfield edit

While some colleges and universities have dedicated departments of biophysics, usually at the graduate level, many do not have university-level biophysics departments, instead having groups in related departments such as biochemistry, cell biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, mathematics, medicine, molecular biology, neuroscience, pharmacology, physics, and physiology. Depending on the strengths of a department at a university differing emphasis will be given to fields of biophysics. What follows is a list of examples of how each department applies its efforts toward the study of biophysics. This list is hardly all inclusive. Nor does each subject of study belong exclusively to any particular department. Each academic institution makes its own rules and there is much overlap between departments.[citation needed]

Many biophysical techniques are unique to this field. Research efforts in biophysics are often initiated by scientists who were biologists, chemists or physicists by training.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Biophysics | science". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2018-07-26.
  2. ^ Zhou HX (March 2011). "Q&A: What is biophysics?". BMC Biology. 9: 13. doi:10.1186/1741-7007-9-13. PMC 3055214. PMID 21371342.
  3. ^ "the definition of biophysics". www.dictionary.com. Retrieved 2018-07-26.
  4. ^ Pearson, Karl (1892). The Grammar of Science. p. 470.
  5. ^ Roland Glaser. Biophysics: An Introduction. Springer; 23 April 2012. ISBN 978-3-642-25212-9.
  6. ^ Sahai, Erik; Trepat, Xavier (July 2018). "Mesoscale physical principles of collective cell organization". Nature Physics. 14 (7): 671–682. Bibcode:2018NatPh..14..671T. doi:10.1038/s41567-018-0194-9. hdl:2445/180672. ISSN 1745-2481. S2CID 125739111.
  7. ^ Popkin, Gabriel (2016-01-07). "The physics of life". Nature News. 529 (7584): 16–18. Bibcode:2016Natur.529...16P. doi:10.1038/529016a. PMID 26738578.
  8. ^ Feynman RP (December 1959). . Archived from the original on 2010-02-11. Retrieved 2017-01-01.
  9. ^ Franceschetti DR (15 May 2012). Applied Science. Salem Press Inc. p. 234. ISBN 978-1-58765-781-8.
  10. ^ Rosen J, Gothard LQ (2009). Encyclopedia of Physical Science. Infobase Publishing. p. 4 9. ISBN 978-0-8160-7011-4.
  11. ^ Longo G, Montévil M (2012-01-01). "The Inert vs. the Living State of Matter: Extended Criticality, Time Geometry, Anti-Entropy - An Overview". Frontiers in Physiology. 3: 39. doi:10.3389/fphys.2012.00039. PMC 3286818. PMID 22375127.

Sources edit

  • Perutz MF (1962). Proteins and Nucleic Acids: Structure and Function. Amsterdam: Elsevier. ASIN B000TS8P4G.
  • Perutz MF (May 1969). "The Croonian Lecture, 1968. The haemoglobin molecule". Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences. 173 (1031): 113–40. Bibcode:1969RSPSB.173..113P. doi:10.1098/rspb.1969.0043. PMID 4389425. S2CID 22104752.
  • Dogonadze RR, Urushadze ZD (1971). "Semi-Classical Method of Calculation of Rates of Chemical Reactions Proceeding in Polar Liquids". J Electroanal Chem. 32 (2): 235–245. doi:10.1016/S0022-0728(71)80189-4.
  • Volkenshtein MV, Dogonadze R, Madumarov AK, Urushadze ZD, Kharkats YI (1972). "Theory of Enzyme Catalysis". Molekuliarnaia Biologiia. Moscow. 6 (3): 431–439. PMID 4645409. In Russian, English summary. Available translations in Italian, Spanish, English, French
  • Rodney M. J. Cotterill (2002). Biophysics : An Introduction. Wiley. ISBN 978-0-471-48538-4.
  • Sneppen K, Zocchi G (2005-10-17). Physics in Molecular Biology (1 ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-84419-2.
  • Glaser R (2004-11-23). Biophysics: An Introduction (Corrected ed.). Springer. ISBN 978-3-540-67088-9.
  • Hobbie RK, Roth BJ (2006). Intermediate Physics for Medicine and Biology (4th ed.). Springer. ISBN 978-0-387-30942-2.
  • Cooper WG (August 2009). "Evidence for transcriptase quantum processing implies entanglement and decoherence of superposition proton states". Bio Systems. 97 (2): 73–89. doi:10.1016/j.biosystems.2009.04.010. PMID 19427355.
  • Cooper WG (December 2009). "Necessity of quantum coherence to account for the spectrum of time-dependent mutations exhibited by bacteriophage T4". Biochemical Genetics. 47 (11–12): 892–910. doi:10.1007/s10528-009-9293-8. PMID 19882244. S2CID 19325354.
  • Goldfarb D (2010). Biophysics Demystified. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-163365-9.

External links edit

 
At Wikiversity, you can learn more and teach others about Biophysics at the Department of Biophysics
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Biophysics.
  • Biophysical Society
  • Journal of Physiology: 2012 virtual issue Biophysics and Beyond
  • bio-physics-wiki
  • Link archive of learning resources for students: biophysika.de (60% English, 40% German)

February 15, 2024
biophysics, interdisciplinary, science, that, applies, approaches, methods, traditionally, used, physics, study, biological, phenomena, covers, scales, biological, organization, from, molecular, organismic, populations, biophysical, research, shares, significa. Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that applies approaches and methods traditionally used in physics to study biological phenomena 1 2 3 Biophysics covers all scales of biological organization from molecular to organismic and populations Biophysical research shares significant overlap with biochemistry molecular biology physical chemistry physiology nanotechnology bioengineering computational biology biomechanics developmental biology and systems biology Kinesin uses protein domain dynamics on nanoscales to walk along a microtubule The term biophysics was originally introduced by Karl Pearson in 1892 4 5 The term biophysics is also regularly used in academia to indicate the study of the physical quantities e g electric current temperature stress entropy in biological systems Other biological sciences also perform research on the biophysical properties of living organisms including molecular biology cell biology chemical biology and biochemistry Contents 1 Overview 2 History 3 Focus as a subfield 4 See also 5 References 5 1 Sources 6 External linksOverview editMolecular biophysics typically addresses biological questions similar to those in biochemistry and molecular biology seeking to find the physical underpinnings of biomolecular phenomena Scientists in this field conduct research concerned with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell including the interactions between DNA RNA and protein biosynthesis as well as how these interactions are regulated A great variety of techniques are used to answer these questions nbsp A ribosome is a biological machine that utilizes protein dynamicsFluorescent imaging techniques as well as electron microscopy x ray crystallography NMR spectroscopy atomic force microscopy AFM and small angle scattering SAS both with X rays and neutrons SAXS SANS are often used to visualize structures of biological significance Protein dynamics can be observed by neutron spin echo spectroscopy Conformational change in structure can be measured using techniques such as dual polarisation interferometry circular dichroism SAXS and SANS Direct manipulation of molecules using optical tweezers or AFM can also be used to monitor biological events where forces and distances are at the nanoscale Molecular biophysicists often consider complex biological events as systems of interacting entities which can be understood e g through statistical mechanics thermodynamics and chemical kinetics By drawing knowledge and experimental techniques from a wide variety of disciplines biophysicists are often able to directly observe model or even manipulate the structures and interactions of individual molecules or complexes of molecules In addition to traditional i e molecular and cellular biophysical topics like structural biology or enzyme kinetics modern biophysics encompasses an extraordinarily broad range of research from bioelectronics to quantum biology involving both experimental and theoretical tools It is becoming increasingly common for biophysicists to apply the models and experimental techniques derived from physics as well as mathematics and statistics to larger systems such as tissues organs 6 populations 7 and ecosystems Biophysical models are used extensively in the study of electrical conduction in single neurons as well as neural circuit analysis in both tissue and whole brain Medical physics a branch of biophysics is any application of physics to medicine or healthcare ranging from radiology to microscopy and nanomedicine For example physicist Richard Feynman theorized about the future of nanomedicine He wrote about the idea of a medical use for biological machines see nanomachines Feynman and Albert Hibbs suggested that certain repair machines might one day be reduced in size to the point that it would be possible to as Feynman put it swallow the doctor The idea was discussed in Feynman s 1959 essay There s Plenty of Room at the Bottom 8 History editThe studies of Luigi Galvani 1737 1798 laid groundwork for the later field of biophysics Some of the earlier studies in biophysics were conducted in the 1840s by a group known as the Berlin school of physiologists Among its members were pioneers such as Hermann von Helmholtz Ernst Heinrich Weber Carl F W Ludwig and Johannes Peter Muller 9 William T Bovie 1882 1958 is credited as a leader of the field s further development in the mid 20th century He was a leader in developing electrosurgery The popularity of the field rose when the book What Is Life by Erwin Schrodinger was published Since 1957 biophysicists have organized themselves into the Biophysical Society which now has about 9 000 members over the world 10 Some authors such as Robert Rosen criticize biophysics on the ground that the biophysical method does not take into account the specificity of biological phenomena 11 Focus as a subfield editWhile some colleges and universities have dedicated departments of biophysics usually at the graduate level many do not have university level biophysics departments instead having groups in related departments such as biochemistry cell biology chemistry computer science engineering mathematics medicine molecular biology neuroscience pharmacology physics and physiology Depending on the strengths of a department at a university differing emphasis will be given to fields of biophysics What follows is a list of examples of how each department applies its efforts toward the study of biophysics This list is hardly all inclusive Nor does each subject of study belong exclusively to any particular department Each academic institution makes its own rules and there is much overlap between departments citation needed Biology and molecular biology Gene regulation single protein dynamics bioenergetics patch clamping biomechanics virophysics Structural biology Angstrom resolution structures of proteins nucleic acids lipids carbohydrates and complexes thereof Biochemistry and chemistry biomolecular structure siRNA nucleic acid structure structure activity relationships Computer science Neural networks biomolecular and drug databases Computational chemistry molecular dynamics simulation molecular docking quantum chemistry Bioinformatics sequence alignment structural alignment protein structure prediction Mathematics graph network theory population modeling dynamical systems phylogenetics Medicine biophysical research that emphasizes medicine Medical biophysics is a field closely related to physiology It explains various aspects and systems of the body from a physical and mathematical perspective Examples are fluid dynamics of blood flow gas physics of respiration radiation in diagnostics treatment and much more Biophysics is taught as a preclinical subject in many medical schools mainly in Europe Neuroscience studying neural networks experimentally brain slicing as well as theoretically computer models membrane permittivity Pharmacology and physiology channelomics electrophysiology biomolecular interactions cellular membranes polyketides Physics negentropy stochastic processes and the development of new physical techniques and instrumentation as well as their application Quantum biology The field of quantum biology applies quantum mechanics to biological objects and problems Decohered isomers to yield time dependent base substitutions These studies imply applications in quantum computing Agronomy and agricultureMany biophysical techniques are unique to this field Research efforts in biophysics are often initiated by scientists who were biologists chemists or physicists by training See also edit nbsp Physics portal nbsp Biology portalBiophysical Society Index of biophysics articles List of publications in biology Biophysics List of publications in physics Biophysics List of biophysicists Outline of biophysics Biophysical chemistry European Biophysical Societies Association Mathematical and theoretical biology Medical biophysics Membrane biophysics Molecular biophysics Neurophysics Physiomics Virophysics Single particle trajectoryReferences edit Biophysics science Encyclopedia Britannica Retrieved 2018 07 26 Zhou HX March 2011 Q amp A What is biophysics BMC Biology 9 13 doi 10 1186 1741 7007 9 13 PMC 3055214 PMID 21371342 the definition of biophysics www dictionary com Retrieved 2018 07 26 Pearson Karl 1892 The Grammar of Science p 470 Roland Glaser Biophysics An Introduction Springer 23 April 2012 ISBN 978 3 642 25212 9 Sahai Erik Trepat Xavier July 2018 Mesoscale physical principles of collective cell organization Nature Physics 14 7 671 682 Bibcode 2018NatPh 14 671T doi 10 1038 s41567 018 0194 9 hdl 2445 180672 ISSN 1745 2481 S2CID 125739111 Popkin Gabriel 2016 01 07 The physics of life Nature News 529 7584 16 18 Bibcode 2016Natur 529 16P doi 10 1038 529016a PMID 26738578 Feynman RP December 1959 There s Plenty of Room at the Bottom Archived from the original on 2010 02 11 Retrieved 2017 01 01 Franceschetti DR 15 May 2012 Applied Science Salem Press Inc p 234 ISBN 978 1 58765 781 8 Rosen J Gothard LQ 2009 Encyclopedia of Physical Science Infobase Publishing p 4 9 ISBN 978 0 8160 7011 4 Longo G Montevil M 2012 01 01 The Inert vs the Living State of Matter Extended Criticality Time Geometry Anti Entropy An Overview Frontiers in Physiology 3 39 doi 10 3389 fphys 2012 00039 PMC 3286818 PMID 22375127 Sources edit Perutz MF 1962 Proteins and Nucleic Acids Structure and Function Amsterdam Elsevier ASIN B000TS8P4G Perutz MF May 1969 The Croonian Lecture 1968 The haemoglobin molecule Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B Biological Sciences 173 1031 113 40 Bibcode 1969RSPSB 173 113P doi 10 1098 rspb 1969 0043 PMID 4389425 S2CID 22104752 Dogonadze RR Urushadze ZD 1971 Semi Classical Method of Calculation of Rates of Chemical Reactions Proceeding in Polar Liquids J Electroanal Chem 32 2 235 245 doi 10 1016 S0022 0728 71 80189 4 Volkenshtein MV Dogonadze R Madumarov AK Urushadze ZD Kharkats YI 1972 Theory of Enzyme Catalysis Molekuliarnaia Biologiia Moscow 6 3 431 439 PMID 4645409 In Russian English summary Available translations in Italian Spanish English French Rodney M J Cotterill 2002 Biophysics An Introduction Wiley ISBN 978 0 471 48538 4 Sneppen K Zocchi G 2005 10 17 Physics in Molecular Biology 1 ed Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0 521 84419 2 Glaser R 2004 11 23 Biophysics An Introduction Corrected ed Springer ISBN 978 3 540 67088 9 Hobbie RK Roth BJ 2006 Intermediate Physics for Medicine and Biology 4th ed Springer ISBN 978 0 387 30942 2 Cooper WG August 2009 Evidence for transcriptase quantum processing implies entanglement and decoherence of superposition proton states Bio Systems 97 2 73 89 doi 10 1016 j biosystems 2009 04 010 PMID 19427355 Cooper WG December 2009 Necessity of quantum coherence to account for the spectrum of time dependent mutations exhibited by bacteriophage T4 Biochemical Genetics 47 11 12 892 910 doi 10 1007 s10528 009 9293 8 PMID 19882244 S2CID 19325354 Goldfarb D 2010 Biophysics Demystified McGraw Hill ISBN 978 0 07 163365 9 External links edit nbsp At Wikiversity you can learn more and teach others about Biophysics at the Department of Biophysics nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Biophysics Biophysical Society Journal of Physiology 2012 virtual issue Biophysics and Beyond bio physics wiki Link archive of learning resources for students biophysika de 60 English 40 German Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Biophysics amp oldid 1194656644, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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