Abstract
The force of muscle contraction is generated by the interaction of a myosin crossbridge with an actin filament. Although the power stroke, in which myosin exerts force on an actin filament over a distance of 5-10 nm, must involve large protein conformational changes, the exact nature of these changes in conformation remains unknown. The observation that actin can be moved by myosin heads attached to a glass substratum confines the location of the force:producing elements to the head region of myosin and an actin filament (Toyoshima et al . , N a t u r e 1987, 328:536-539). Thus, recent work on force production has concentrated on the structures and interactions of these two proteins.
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