The depletion attraction: an underappreciated force driving cellular organization
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Open Access
- 4 December 2006
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Rockefeller University Press in The Journal of cell biology
- Vol. 175 (5) , 681-686
- https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.200609066
Abstract
Cellular structures are shaped by hydrogen and ionic bonds, plus van der Waals and hydrophobic forces. In cells crowded with macromolecules, a little-known and distinct force—the “depletion attraction”—also acts. We review evidence that this force assists in the assembly of a wide range of cellular structures, ranging from the cytoskeleton to chromatin loops and whole chromosomes.Keywords
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