Functional Flexibility
Functional Flexibility - Related Videos
08:30
Operant Procedures for Assessing Behavioral Flexibility in Rats
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Cited by 69 •
2015
The ability to assess executive functions such as behavioral flexibility in rats is useful for investigating the neurobiology of cognition in both intact animals and disease models. Here we describe automated tasks for assessing strategy shifting and reversal learning, which are particularly sensitive to disruptions in prefrontal cortical networks.
03:47
Implantation of a Flexible Biocompatible Probe in a Glioblastoma Mouse Model
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2025
Source: Lefevre, M. C., et al., Flexible Organic Electronic Devices for Pulsed Electric Field Therapy of Glioblastoma. J. Vis. Exp. (2022)This video demonstrates the implantation of a flexible, biocompatible probe in a glioblastoma mouse model to deliver targeted pulsed electric field therapy for neurotherapeutic applications.
08:43
Effect of Bending on the Electrical Characteristics of Flexible Organic Single Crystal-based Field-effect Transistors
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Cited by 1 •
2016
This manuscript describes the bending process of an organic single crystal-based field-effect transistor to maintain a functioning device for electronic property measurement. The results suggest that bending causes changes in the molecular spacing in the crystal and thus in the charge hopping rate, which is important in flexible electronics.
06:40
Insertion of Flexible Neural Probes Using Rigid Stiffeners Attached with Biodissolvable Adhesive
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Cited by 99 •
2013
Insertion of flexible neural microelectrode probes is enabled by attaching probes to rigid stiffeners with polyethylene glycol (PEG). A unique assembly process ensures uniform and repeatable attachment. After insertion into tissue, the PEG dissolves and the stiffener is extracted. An in vitro test method evaluates the technique in agarose gel.
00:52
¹H NMR of Conformationally Flexible Molecules: Temporal Resolution
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2024
At room temperature, the chair conformer of cyclohexane undergoes rapid ring flipping between two equivalent chair conformers at a rate of approximately 105 times per second. These two chair conformers are in equilibrium. The rapid ring flipping results in the interconversion of the axial proton to an equatorial proton and an equatorial to the axial proton. Such interconversions are too rapid and cannot be detected on the NMR timescale. Hence, the NMR spectrometer cannot distinguish between the...
FAQs
A protein can shift among conformations, or three-dimensional arrangements, as molecular dynamics change over time. These shifts may expose or conceal binding regions, modify catalytic activity, or alter signaling interactions. Because the changes remain reversible rather than permanently restructuring the molecule, the same protein can support different activities under different cellular conditions.
Transient interactions provide short-lived contacts that can regulate how molecules bind, communicate, or participate in reactions. Their temporary nature allows biological systems to adjust activity without locking components into one state. This is especially important for proteins whose functions depend on changing partners, signaling cues, or metabolic demands rather than on a single fixed structure.
Changing conditions can shift molecular dynamics and influence the activity of proteins and pathways. Functional flexibility helps cells modify signaling and metabolic activity while preserving essential functions, supporting stability under stress. This adaptability links molecular behavior with broader cellular responses, including adjustments to environmental cues and regulation of metabolic pathways.
Functional flexibility changes activity through reversible conformational shifts, transient interactions, or altered molecular dynamics. A permanent structural change, by contrast, would not provide the same ready adjustment between functional states. This distinction matters because flexibility can preserve essential biological roles while allowing binding, catalysis, or signaling to respond to changing conditions.
Researchers can examine how changes in molecular dynamics and conformation correspond to differences in binding, catalysis, and signaling. This approach moves beyond treating structure as static and helps explain why a molecule behaves differently under distinct conditions. The resulting structure-function perspective supports interpretation of cellular regulation and other biological responses.
Functional flexibility informs protein engineering by highlighting adaptable features that may be modified for desired activities. It also contributes to research on evolution, disease mechanisms, and therapies that target dynamic biological processes. In biology, this perspective helps explain how molecular changes influence cellular regulation and how altered dynamics may relate to disease.