Related papers: Low-Dimensional Manifold of Actin Polymerization D…
Dynamics of various biological filaments can be understood within the framework of active polymer models. Here we consider a bead-spring model for a flexible polymer chain in which the active interaction among the beads is introduced via an…
We present a study on filamentous actin solutions containing heavy meromyosin subfragments of myosin II motor molecules. We focus on the viscoelastic phase behavior and internal dynamics of such networks during ATP depletion. Upon…
The cytoskeleton provides eukaryotic cells with mechanical support and helps them perform their biological functions. It is a network of semiflexible polar protein filaments and many accessory proteins that bind to these filaments, regulate…
The dynamics of geometrically non-linear flexible filaments play an important role in a host of biological processes, from flagella-driven cell transport to the polymeric structure of complex fluids. Such problems have historically been…
Cells moving on a two dimensional substrate generate motion by polymerizing actin filament networks inside a flat membrane protrusion. New filaments are generated by branching off existing ones, giving rise to branched network structures.…
The composite cytoskeleton, comprising interacting networks of semiflexible actin and rigid microtubules, actively generates forces and restructures using motor proteins such as myosins to enable key mechanical processes including cell…
This article concludes a three-part series developing a self-consistent theoretical framework of the electromechanics of lipid membranes at the continuum scale. Owing to their small thickness, lipid membranes are commonly modeled as…
The kinetic behavior of a three-dimensional off-lattice heteropolymer model is studied in terms of the time dependence of the average mean-square displacement between configurations. It is found that at short time-scales similar behavior is…
We explore the critical behaviour of two and three dimensional lattice models of polymers in dilute solution where the monomers carry a magnetic moment which interacts ferromagnetically with near-neighbour monomers. Specifically, the model…
The interaction of the actin cytoskeleton with cell-substrate adhesions is necessary for cell migration. While the trajectories of motile cells have a stochastic character, investigations of cell motility mechanisms rarely elaborate on the…
High-resolution simulations of particle-based kinetic plasma models typically require a high number of particles and thus often become computationally intractable. This is exacerbated in multi-query simulations, where the problem depends on…
Understanding chromatin organization and dynamics is important since they crucially affect DNA functions. In this study, we investigate chromatin dynamics by statistically analyzing single-nucleosome movement in living human cells. Bi-modal…
The actin cytoskeleton is remarkably adaptable and multifunctional. It often organizes into nematic bundles such as contractile rings or stress fibers. However, how a uniform and isotropic actin gel self-organizes into dense nematic bundles…
Fluid-structure interactions between active and passive components are important for many biological systems to function. A particular example is chromatin in the cell nucleus, where ATP-powered processes drive coherent motions of the…
Curvature plays a central organizational role in active polymer dynamics. Using large-scale Langevin-dynamics simulations, we study active semiflexible filaments confined to smooth curved surfaces and map how curvature, bending rigidity,…
Many cytoskeletal biopolymers are "active," consuming energy in large quantities. In this Letter, we identify a fundamental difference between active polymers and passive, equilibrium polymers: for equal mean lengths, active polymers can…
The cytoskeletal component actomyosin is a canonical example of active matter since the powerstroke cycle locally converts chemical energy in the form of adenoside triphosphate (ATP) into mechanical work for remodelling. Observing myosin II…
The cytoskeleton is an inhomogeneous network of semi-flexible filaments, which are involved in a wide variety of active biological processes. Although the cytoskeletal filaments can be very stiff and embedded in a dense and cross-linked…
Understanding the mechanisms responsible for the formation and growth of FtsZ polymers and their subsequent formation of the $Z$-ring is important for gaining insight into the cell division in prokaryotic cells. In this work, we present a…
Allostery plays a fundament role in most biological processes. However, little theory is available to describe it outside of two-state models. Here we use a statistical mechanical approach to show that the allosteric coupling between two…