Fig. 4
Two modes of DNA knot translocation and the size distribution of knots. a Distinctive modes of knot translocation in circular DNA; a single-filament knot resides on one strand of the translocating DNA, cross-filament knot straddles over two translocating filaments, experiencing significantly lower tension force. b Single-filament and cross-filament knots in translocating linear DNAs with leading (left) and trailing folded loops (right). c Proportions of knotted events in different configurations, where high relative prevalence of \(\langle 1 - \overline {k{\mathrm{ - 2}}}\rangle\) knots demonstrates the existence of cross-filament mode of translocation. d Histogram of the measured knot contour lengths shows coexistence of both tight and loose knots. Black curve represents simulated distribution of knot sizes for DNA population with wDNA = 2.5 nm. e Histograms of knot sizes for linear DNA (top) and circular DNA (bottom) shows very similar distribution, despite different modes of translocation, indicating lack of knot-tightening in our experiments. Source Data are provided as a Source Data file
