Charge transport in DNA



Effects of base-pairs fluctuations on long-range charge transport in DNA


S. Komineasa,b, G. Kalosakasa, and A.R. Bishopa
aTheoretical Division and Center for Nonlinear Studies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545
bPhysikalisches Institut, Universitaet Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany






Abstract

We investigate the propagation of a charge carrier along a dynamically disordered double-stranded DNA. This is realized by the coupling of the charge with a nonlinear lattice model that can efficiently describe the statistical mechanics of the large amplitude fluctuations of the base pairs leading to the denaturation transition of DNA. We found that a large denaturation bubble can trap the charge and inhibit the polaronic transport. The dependence of the mean distance covered by the charge carrier until its pinning, as a function of the energy of the random thermal fluctuations of the base pairs is also presented.