Theoretical Molecular Biophysics

by Philipp O.J. Scherer, Sighart F. Fischer

Overview

"Theoretical Molecular Biophysics" is an advanced study book for students, shortly before or after completing undergraduate studies, in physics, chemistry or biology. It provides the tools for an understanding of elementary processes in biology, such as photosynthesis on a molecular level. A basic knowledge in mechanics, electrostatics, quantum theory and statistical physics is desirable. The reader will be exposed to basic concepts in modern biophysics such as entropic forces, phase separation, potentials of mean force, proton and electron transfer, heterogeneous reactions coherent and incoherent energy transfer as well as molecular motors. Basic concepts such as phase transitions of biopolymers, electrostatics, protonation equilibria, ion transport, radiationless transitions as well as energy- and electron transfer are discussed within the frame of simple models.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783642264115
Publisher:	Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Publication date:	09/05/2012
Series:	Biological and Medical Physics, Biomedical Engineering
Edition description:	2010
Pages:	371
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)

About the Author

Philipp Scherer received his PhD in experimental and theoretical physics in 1984 with Prof. Wolfgang Kaiser and Prof. Sighart Fischer in Munich. From 1985-1999 he was postdoc at Technische Universität München where he received his habilitation in theoretical physics in 1996. In 2001 and 2003 he spent several months as a visiting scientist at AIST in Tsukuba, Japan. Since 1999 he is lecturer at TUM, from 2006-2008 he was temporary leader of the institute for theoretical biomolecular physics at TUM , since 2008 he is adjunct professor at TUM.

Sighart Fischer received his PhD in theoretical physics in 1965 with Professor F. Hund in Göttingen. From 1966-1969 he was postdoctoral fellow and instructor at Northwestern University and at the University of Chicago. From 1970-1974 he was professor at the Nortwestern University, Evanston, since 1974 Universitätsprofessor für Theoretische Physik at Technische Universität München, and since 2006 he is an emeritus of excellence.

Table of Contents

Statistical Mechanics of Biopolymers.- Random Walk Models for the Conformation.- Flory–Huggins Theory for Biopolymer Solutions.- Protein Electrostatics and Solvation.- Implicit Continuum Solvent Models.- Debye–Hückel Theory.- Protonation Equilibria.- Reaction Kinetics.- Formal Kinetics.- Kinetic Theory: Fokker–Planck Equation.- Kramers’ Theory.- Dispersive Kinetics.- Transport Processes.- Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics.- Simple Transport Processes.- Ion Transport Through a Membrane.- Reaction–Diffusion Systems.- Reaction Rate Theory.- Equilibrium Reactions.- Calculation of Reaction Rates.- Marcus Theory of Electron Transfer.- Elementry Photophysis.- Molecular States.- Optical Transitions.- The Displaced Harmonic Oscillator Model.- Spectral Diffusion.- Crossing of Two Electronic States.- Dynamics of an Excited State.- Elementry Photoinduced Processes.- Photophysics of Chlorophylls and Carotenoids.- Incoherent Energy Transfer.- Coherent Excitations in Photosynthetic Systems.- Ultrafast Electron Transfer Processes in the Photosynthetic Reaction Center.- Proton Transfer in Biomolecules.- Molecular Motor Models.- Continuous Ratchet Models.- Discrete Ratchet Models.- The Grand Canonical Ensemble.- Time Correlation Function of the Displaced Harmonic Oscillator Model.- The Saddle Point Method.

Editorial Reviews

From the book reviews:

“This is a good text deriving formulae of interest to Biophysicists, students of mathematics, fellows, and theoretical physicists. The dynamic predicate calculus and differential forms inc. Kramer’s Rules and Theorems are defined and further developed in sequential linear theory.” (Joseph J. Grenier, Amazon.com, August, 2014)

“Biophysics is a fast growing area at the interface between physics and biology … . The book by Scherer and Fischer is a first attempt in this direction. Their effort is laudable. … The book will be a useful text for students and researchers wanting to go through the mathematical derivations in the theories presented. … this book will attract a group of applied mathematically oriented students and scholars to the exciting field of molecular biophysics.” (Hong Qian, Mathematical Reviews, Issue 2012 c)

“Intended for graduate students, Theoretical Molecular Biophysics by Philipp Scherer and Sighart Fischer grew out of a biophysics course taught by the authors in the physics department of the Technical University of Munich. … A striking feature of Theoretical Molecular Biophysics is the large number of equations relative to text … . chapters close with challenging problems whose solutions are provided at the end of the book. … The book closes with an interesting review of molecular-motor models.” (H. Richard Leuchtag, Physics Today, May, 2011)

From the Publisher