Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) on nuclei of chicken erythrocytes demonstrates the cubic dependence of the scattering intensity Q-3 in the range of momentum transfer Q 10-3-10-2nm-1. Independent spin-echo SANS measurements give the spin-echo function, which is well described by the exponential law in a range of sizes (3×102)-(3×104) nm. Both experimental dependences reflect the nature of the structural organization of chromatin in the nucleus of a living cell, which corresponds to the correlation function γ(r)=ln(ξ/r) for r<ξ, where ξ=(3.69±0.07)×103 nm, the size of the nucleus. It has the specific scaling property of the logarithmic fractal γ(r/a)=γ(r)+ln(a), i.e., the scaling down by a gives an additive constant to the correlation function, which distinguishes it from the mass fractal, which is characterized by multiplicative constant.

Original languageEnglish
Article number012411
JournalPhysical Review E
Volume96
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 19 Jul 2017

    Research areas

  • Animals, Cell Nucleus/chemistry, Chickens, Chromatin/chemistry, DNA/chemistry, Erythrocytes/chemistry, Fractals, Models, Biological, Models, Molecular, Neutron Diffraction, Nucleic Acid Conformation, Scattering, Small Angle

    Scopus subject areas

  • Statistical and Nonlinear Physics
  • Statistics and Probability
  • Condensed Matter Physics

ID: 51777560