Direct observation of transition paths during the folding of proteins and nucleic acids

Transition paths, the fleeting trajectories through the transition states that dominate the dynamics of biomolecular folding reactions, encapsulate the critical information about how structure forms. Owing to their brief duration, however, they have not previously been observed directly. We measured transition paths for both nucleic acid and protein folding, using optical tweezers to observe the microscopic diffusive motion of single molecules traversing energy barriers. The average transit times and the shapes of the transit-time distributions agreed well with theoretical expectations for motion over the one-dimensional energy landscapes reconstructed for the same molecules, validating the physical theory of folding reactions. These measurements provide a first look at the critical microscopic events that occur during folding, opening exciting new avenues for investigating folding phenomena.