The Workhorse of the Cell: Kinesin

Masterpieces of microengineering, kinesins are motorized transport machines that move cellular materials to their correct locations in the cell so they can perform their functions. Kinesins have two feet, or "globular heads," that literally walk, one foot over another. Known as the "workhorses of the cell," kinesins can carry cargo many times their own size.

[invisibleinkling]

The word "simple" should never again be used to describe a cell or cellular functions.

[jona]

The animation shows them walking leisurely along when in fact they are sprinting from one place to another within the cell. Mind blowing!

[dirtylaundry]

This stuff just never ceases to amaze me! These are little entities unto themselves. All working with purpose and with specific instructions. Mind blowing stuff.

[carlofavetta]

Pretty awesome. Imagine how many of these minute molecular machines inside of us, busily doing their intended job.

[Montu]

Darwin thought that cells were just a bunch of simple redundant protoplasm, had he known how complex just a tiny single cell is, then he would have doubted his own theory of evolution.

[bentonpix]

I just got a warm a fuzzy feeling for those little workers! Gotta love 'em!

[isaacdouglas]

damn that intelligent design part just came out of nowhere

[Perplexer]

I almost gave this video a thumbs up until I heard him say "Another example of intelligent design" at 3:05.

[anthonycorradolalli]

Last words of this video: Intelligent Design. Accept it and give the Creator the credit and gratitude.

[mimelnaggar]

Glory to the creator . A masterpiece of engineering.

[ConnectSparrows]

Thank you for a very helpful video. This was recommended to me by my teacher!

[duncanmountford]

As a physicist, my understanding is that in general random processes don’t produce order. The complexity in the cellular molecular machines is astonishing. Could random processes ever produce something this complex? Science doesn’t have an explanation.

[mjazzguitar]

Did the very first cell that is the ancestor of every living thing on the planet have these?
If not, how did it move things around and how did incremental mutations create something this complex?
If so, how did something that complex come together by accident?

[netvillage]

I think I remember that if the Kinesin runs into a tube blocking it's path, it'll actually flip to the underside of the bridge and get around it that way. Would be cool to include that in the vid too.

[gratituderanch]

Absolutely. We are truly amazingly made. Blows my mind!

[SabaDhutt]

Fascinating. I could watch this stuff all day.

[orvillewright]

There is a problem that can only have two possible solutions. One of the answers I can clearly see is impossible and the other one I can simply not tolerate because of the implications and how it effects me personally. Which one am I going to say is correct?

[kyberuserid]

A couple of notes: a) the average cell is about .1 mm, so a circuitous path is required for a 8mm walk and b) the mention of 'intelligent design' at the end should be noted. Follow up indicated the usual meaning of that.

[belovedKC]

SUPER DUPER AMAZING !!! WE TAKE OUR CELLS FOR GRANTED ~ CELL IS A WHOLE UNIVERSE IN ITSELF!

[AlphaOne]

There exists a multitude of arguments that can demonstrate the inherent inadequacies of natural selection and random variation to produce such a machine as the kinesin. Utilizing the lack of necessary, probabilistic resources as an argument, which in itself is staggering, only serves to detract from the most fundamental requirement - "need." At many of the stages that would be required to achieve its proposed evolution, there simply would not be any benefit for selection to take place. Though not my specific argument here, my point seems consistent with the concept of irreducible complexity. One could say, I suppose, that there could be "some" benefit at each of the stages of its evolution. However, since there is no way to test such a proposition, the argument would be no different than a teleological argument for the existence of a transcendent deity.