​A different approach to analyzing the motion of diffusing molecules has helped overturn the long-held assumption that DNA molecules move in a haphazard way. KAUST researchers reveal for the first time that DNA molecules move not by random Brownian motion but by a nonrandom walk related to polymer dynamics in a way that conserves overall Brownian characteristics1.

“Brownian motion is a process whereby molecules move randomly in a fluid by colliding with other molecules,” explained Dr. Maged Serag, a postdoctoral researcher in Bioscience at KAUST. “In living cells, Brownian motion allows molecules to move rapidly and efficiently between cell organelles and interact with other molecules.”

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Image: A new single-molecule tracking method based on fluorescence molecular imaging revealed nonrandom motion of DNA molecules.
© KAUST Anastasia Khrenova