Prof. Ralf Metzler

Ralf Metzler graduated from the University of Ulm, where he also obtained his PhD degree at the Department of Mathematical Physics. He then went to Tel Aviv University for a postdoc with Joseph Klafter, before going to the Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT) for his second postdoc, with Mehran Kardar. Ralf was appointed Assistant professor at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics (NORDITA) in Copenhagen. Subsequently he was appointed Associate professor at the University of Ottawa and Canada Research Chair in Biological Physics. Since 2007 Ralf is Professor at the Technical University of Munich. Ralf has published 120 articles in scientific journals, on stochastic processes, DNA physics, and other topics in biological physics.

http://users.physik.tu-muenchen.de/metz/

Regulation and random motion in cells: Single molecule experiments and theory

The regulation of genes relies on the random, passive search of DNA binding proteins to find their specific binding site within megabases of DNA. In this search the proteins combine different diffusion strategies, giving rise to a quite efficient search even at comparatively low protein concentrations. Models for this search will be presented and compared to recent experiments performed on single DNA molecules.

Such experiments are usually carried out in dilute environments. In living cells the bulk volume is highly crowded by large biopolymers, causing significant changes in the diffusion behaviour. In many experiments deviations from the laws of normal diffusion are observed. In the second part of the lecture it will be addressed how one can deduce specific mechanisms from such measurements on anomalous diffusion behavior, and how it impacts transport in the cell.