Rigidity, Torsion, and Mechanical Response of a Tetra-Stranded Genome : A Unified Theoretical and Experimental Framework for Q-DNA Elasticity
| dc.contributor.author | Barack Ndenga | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-12-25T09:00:09Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025-12-25 | |
| dc.description | The mechanical properties of a genetic polymer impose fundamental constraints on its ability to support replication, transcription, and long-term heredity. Duplex DNA occupies a well-characterized elastic regime described by the worm-like chain (WLC) model and its twistable and extensible variants, with quantitative benchmarks established through single-molecule force and torque spectroscopy. In this work, I develop a unified theoretical and experimental framework for the mechanics of Q-DNA, defined as a canonical tetra-stranded hereditary polymer. I show that genome-scale tetra-strand coupling necessarily gives rise to a distinct elastic regime, which cannot be reduced to a simple perturbation of duplex DNA mechanics. I introduce a generalized worm-like chain model (Q-WLC) that incorporates multi-strand bending, torsion, and internal strand-registry modes. This framework predicts modified force–extension behavior, altered twist–stretch coupling, and the emergence of multi-step mechanical transitions associated with internal strand rearrangements rather than duplex-like denaturation. These predictions are explicitly formulated to be falsifiable using existing single-molecule platforms, including optical and magnetic tweezers. By linking_translation-level mechanical observables to the feasibility of replication and transcription, this work establishes mechanics as a decisive criterion for evaluating tetra-stranded heredity. More broadly, it positions Q-DNA elasticity as a testable physical hypothesis at the intersection of polymer physics, molecular biophysics, and synthetic genetics, and provides a concrete pathway for experimental validation or refutation. | |
| dc.description.abstract | The mechanical properties of a hereditary polymer constrain its capacity for replication, transcription, and segregation. Duplex DNA occupies a well-characterized elastic regime described by the worm-like chain (WLC) and its twistable extensions. Here, I develop a unified theoretical and experimental framework for the mechanics of Q-DNA, a canonical tetra-stranded hereditary polymer, and show that such a system necessarily defines a distinct elastic regime. I introduce a generalized worm-like chain model (Q-WLC) incorporating multi-strand bending, torsion, and inter-strand coupling modes, derive experimentally observable response functions, and propose concrete single-molecule assays capable of validating or falsifying the model. This work establishes mechanics as a decisive feasibility axis for tetra-stranded heredity. Keywords: Q-DNA, tetra-stranded genome, worm-like chain, twistable WLC, single-molecule force spectroscopy, torsional stiffness | |
| dc.description.provenance | Submitted by Barack Ndenga (ndengabarack@gmail.com) on 2025-12-25T09:00:09Z No. of bitstreams: 2 95th.pdf: 342330 bytes, checksum: bfa01b05dccd7706febe36210232352a (MD5) license_rdf: 1166 bytes, checksum: d700fae5b268849d8bbda3dffdc09cde (MD5) | en |
| dc.description.provenance | Made available in DSpace on 2025-12-25T09:00:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 95th.pdf: 342330 bytes, checksum: bfa01b05dccd7706febe36210232352a (MD5) license_rdf: 1166 bytes, checksum: d700fae5b268849d8bbda3dffdc09cde (MD5) Previous issue date: 2025-12-25 | en |
| dc.description.sponsorship | None | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://africarxiv.ubuntunet.net/handle/1/10667 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher | Publisher | |
| dc.rights | Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States | en |
| dc.rights.uri | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/ | |
| dc.title | Rigidity, Torsion, and Mechanical Response of a Tetra-Stranded Genome : A Unified Theoretical and Experimental Framework for Q-DNA Elasticity | |
| dc.type | Article |
