After thousands of stretches, a pattern emerged. The molecule exhibited linear elasticity--a property that had never been seen in any other protein. |
No other protein investigated so far, with regard to their elasticity, revealed such a behavior. When excessive forces are applied [to] the spiral's structure, it may break down and the individual repeats may unfold. However, when the external force is released, the repeats will re-fold immediately and recreate the spiral, and thus fully recover their elastic properties. |