Pulling on Individual Biomolecules With Centrifugal Force

Probing individual biomolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids with force continues to shape our understanding of how biological molecules stretch, deform, move, reconfigure, and interact with each other. However, such experiments can be technically challenging, tedious, and costly. Here, I will discuss the conception, design, and continued development of the centrifuge force microscope (CFM), an instrument designed to increase the throughput and the accessibility of single-molecule experiments. I will then dive into applications and uses of the CFM, focusing on recent work in my lab measuring individual stacking energies between bases in DNA and RNA.