Outline of biophysics

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to biophysics:

Biophysics – interdisciplinary science that uses the methods of physical science to study biological systems.^[1]

Nature of biophysics

Biophysics is

• An academic discipline: one with academic departments, curricula and degrees; national and international societies; and specialized journals.
• A scientific field (a branch of science) – widely-recognized category of specialized expertise within science, and typically embodies its own terminology and nomenclature. Such a field will usually be represented by one or more scientific journals, where peer reviewed research is published.
  • A natural science – one that seeks to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world using empirical and scientific methods.
    • A biological science –
    • A branch of physics –
• An interdisciplinary field – field of science that overlaps with other sciences

Scope of biophysics research

• Biomolecular scale
  • Biomolecule
  • Biomolecular structure
• Environmental scale
  • Biophysical environment

Biophysics research overlaps with

• Agrophysics
• Biochemistry
  • Biophysical chemistry
• Bioengineering
• Biogeophysics
• Nanotechnology
• Systems biology

Branches of biophysics

• Astrobiophysics –
• Medical biophysics – uses physics to describe and control biological processes for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. See also, medical physics.
  • Clinical biophysics – studies the process and effects of non-ionising physical energies utilised for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.^[2][3]
• Membrane biophysics – study of biological membranes using physical, computational, mathematical, and biophysical methods.
• Molecular biophysics – interdisciplinary field that applies methods and concepts from physics, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and biology^[4] to understand biomolecular systems and explain biological function in terms of molecular structure, structural organization, and dynamic behaviour at various levels of complexity, from single molecules to supramolecular]structures, viruses and small living systems.

Biophysical techniques

Scientist using a stereo microscope outfitted with a digital imaging pick-up

Biophysical techniques – methods used for gaining information about biological systems on an atomic or molecular level. They overlap with methods from many other branches of science.

• Biophotonics –
• Biosensor and Bioelectronics –
• Calcium imaging –
• Calorimetry –
• Chromatography – various techniques from this field are used for the purification and analysis of biological molecules
• Circular Dichroism –
• Computational chemistry – use of numerical methods to probe the structure and dynamical equilibrium in biological systems.
• Cryobiology –
• Dual Polarisation Interferometry – analytical technique used to measure the real-time conformation and activity of a wide range of biomolecules and their interactions.
• Electrophysiology – studies electrical properties of cell membranes and provide functional data, often related to systematic changes in structure.
• Electron microscopy – used to gain high-resolution images of subcellular structures
• Fluorescence spectroscopy – for detecting structural rearrangements, as well as interactions of biomolecules. See also, Fluorescence.
• Force spectroscopy – probes the mechanical properties of individual molecules or macromolecular assemblies using small flexible cantilevers, focused laser light, or magnetic fields.
• Gel electrophoresis – determines the mass, the charge and the interactions of biological molecules
• Imaging –
• Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC) – measures the heat effects caused by interactions
• Mass spectrometry – technique that gives the molecular mass with great accuracy.
• Microscale Thermophoresis (MST) – method to measure binding affinities, enzymatic activities, changes in molecule conformation and changes in size, charge or hydration entropy.
• Microscopy – used in many ways, for example, to enabled the use of laser instruments for scanning and transmission.
  • Atomic force microscopy –
• Neuroimaging –
• Neutron spin echo spectroscopy –
• Optical tweezers and Magnetic tweezers – allow for the manipulation of single molecules, providing information about DNA and its interaction with proteins and molecular motors, such as Helicase and RNA polymerase.
• Patch clamping –
• NMR spectroscopy – provides information about the exact structure of biological molecules, as well as on dynamics
• Single molecule spectroscopy – general term applied to a class of techniques that are sensitive enough to detect single molecules and often incorporates fluorescence detection.
• Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) – technique that gives a rough low resolution molecular structure.
• Spectrophotometry – measurement of the transmission of light through different solutions or substances at different wavelengths of light.
  • Colorimetry –
• Spectroscopy &nd*Circular dichroism – method for detecting chiral groups in molecules, especially to determine the secondary structure of proteins
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy –
• Ultracentrifugation – gives information on the shape and mass of molecules
• X-ray crystallography – method to determin the exact structure of molecules with atomic resolution

Applications

• Biophysical profile

Biophysical structures and phenomena

In molecular biophysics

• Molecular biophysics
• Biological membranes
• Cell membranes
• Bioenergetics
• Channels, receptors and transporters
• Enzyme kinetics
• Molecular motors
• Phospholipids
• Proteins
• Biofilms
• Supramolecular assemblies
• Nucleic acids

In cellular biophysics

• Cellular biology
• Cell division
• Cell migration
• Cell signalling
• Dynamical systems
• Electrophysiology
• Signaling
• Biochemical systems theory
• Metabolic control analysis

Biophysics organizations

• Biophysical Society
• European Biophysical Societies' Association

Biophysics publications

• Bibliography of biophysics
• Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
• Biophysical Journal
• Biophysical Reviews and Letters

Persons influential in biophysics

• List of biophysicists

See also

Biophysics portal

• Physiomics
• Animal locomotion
• Bioacoustics
• Biomechanics
• Biomineralisation
• Bionics
• Evolution
• Evolutionary algorithms
• Evolutionary computing
• Evolutionary theory
• Gravitational biology
• Mathematical biology
• Morphogenesis
• Muscle and contractility
• Negentropy
• Neural encoding
• Radiobiology
• Sensory systems
• Systems neuroscience
• Tensegrity
• Theoretical biology

References

1. ^ Careers in Biophysics brochure, Biophysical Society https://www.biophysics.org/Portals/1/PDFs/Career%20Center/Careers%20In%20Biophysics.pdf
2. ^ Aaron RK, Ciombor DM, Wang S, Simon B. Clinical biophysics: the promotion of skeletal repair by physical forces. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2006 Apr;1068:513-31. Review.
3. ^ Anbar, M. Clinical biophysics: A new concept in undergraduate medical education. J Medical Education, 56, 443–444 (1981)
4. ^ What is a molecular biophysics?

External links

• Biophysical Society
• Nasif Nahle, Biophysics