Dalton News

Dalton Students Model Sustainable Nanomotors for Medical and Aerospace Applications

Alexander Berman ‘26 and Shreya Ranjan ‘26, under the supervision of physics teacher and Columbia associate scientist Dr. Lindo, as well as Columbia professor Henry Hess, traveled to San Diego to present at the American Chemical Society conference. Their presentation shared the results of a one-year research project funded by the National Science Foundation.
Alex and Shreya developed and tested alternative models to study the wear and repair of microtubules propelled by surface-adhered kinesin motor proteins. Microtubules are cylindrical structures, approximately 25 nm in diameter, composed of tubulin proteins. Together with kinesin motor proteins, they can be engineered into molecular shuttles capable of transporting nanoscale cargo such as drug particles or diagnostic agents.

To assess the functional lifespan of these shuttles for applications in medicine and aerospace, the students modeled both the count and the length of microtubules over time. Their research contributes to a deeper understanding of how such nanosystems can self-sustain and perform in demanding environments and is a small step to move the frontiers of science and engineering.

Citation: Berman, A., Ranjan, S., Dhar, A., Hess, H., & Lindo, D. (2025). Modeling wear and repair of microtubules propelled by surface-adhered kinesin motor proteins. Presented at the American Chemical Society Conference.

Submitted by Sustainability Coordinator and Physics Teacher Dr. David Lindo
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