zlacker

>>qqqqqu+(OP)
I would like to understand how cellular biology processes actually work. Like, how do all the right modules and proteins line up in the right orientation every time? Every time I watch animations, it seems like the proteins and such just magically appear when needed and disappear when not needed [0]. Sometimes it's an ultra-complex looking protein and it just magically flys over to the DNA, attaches to the correct spot, does it's thing, detaches, and flies away. Yeah right! As if the protein is being flown by a pilot. How does it really work?

[0] https://youtu.be/5VefaI0LrgE

>>umvi+go
They don't. This is a pet-peeve of mine, and it's reinforced by animation after animation.

Everything is being jostled around randomly. The molecules don't have brains or seeker warheads. They can't "decide" to home in on a target.

The only mechanisms for guidance are: diffusion due to concentration gradients, movement of charged molecules due to electric fields, and molecules actually grabbing other molecules.

It's all probabilities. This conformation makes it more likely that this thing will stick to this other thing. You may have heard that genes can be turned on or off. How? DNA is literally wound on molecular spools in your cell nuclei. When the DNA is loosely wound other molecules can bump into it and transcribe it -- the gene is ON. When the DNA is tightly spooled, other molecules can't get in there and the gene is OFF for transcription. There's no binary switch, just likelihoods.

Everything is probabilistic, but the probabilities have been tuned by evolution through natural selection to deliver a system that works well enough.