Force-Velocity Relations of a Two-State Crossbridge Model for Molecular Motors

. -- We discuss the force-velocity relations obtained in a two-state crossbridge model for molecular motors. They can be calculated analytically in two limiting cases: for a large number and for one pair of motors. The effect of the strain-dependent detachment rate on the motor characteristics is studied. It can lead to linear, myosin-like, kinesin-like and anomalous curves. In particular, we specify the conditions under which oscillatory behavior may be found. Understanding the molecular mechanism underlying biological motors has recently attracted increasing interest in biology as well as in physics [1]. Motor proteins such as myosin, kinesin and dynein moving along molecular tracks are involved in a wide range of processes essential for life, e.g. cell division, muscle contraction, and intracellular transport of organelles. For many decades exclusively data from physiological measurements on muscles [2] provided experimental information for modeling molecular motors [3, 4]. In recen..