Related papers: Active chemo-mechanical solitons
In living cells, molecular motors convert chemical energy into mechanical work. Its thermodynamic energy efficiency, i.e. the ratio of output mechanical work to input chemical energy, is usually high. However, using two-state models, we…
Inspired by active shape morphing in developing tissues and biomaterials, we investigate two generic mechanochemical models where the deformations of a thin elastic sheet are driven by, and in turn affect, the concentration gradients of a…
Fundamental biological and biomimetic processes, from tissue morphogenesis to soft robotics, rely on the propagation of chemical and mechanical surface waves to signal and coordinate active force generation. The complex interplay between…
A common feature of biological self-organization is how active agents communicate with each other or their environment via chemical signaling. Such communications, mediated by self-generated chemical gradients, have consequences for both…
We propose a minimal mathematical model to explain long-range coordination of dynamics of multiple cells in epithelial spreading, which may be induced, under different conditions, by a chemical signal, or mechanical stress, or both. The…
From cytoskeletal networks to tissues, many biological systems behave as active materials. Their composition and stress-generation is affected by chemical reaction networks. In such systems, the coupling between mechanics and chemistry…
Electrical engineering and molecular programming share many of the same mathematical foundations. In this paper, we show how to send multiple signals through a single pair of chemical species using modulation and demodulation techniques…
Biological active matter is typically tightly coupled to chemical reaction networks affecting its assembly-disassembly dynamics and stress generation. We show that localized states can emerge spontaneously if assembly of active matter is…
The calcium transport in biological systems is modelled as a reaction-diffusion process. Nonlinear calcium waves are then simulated using a stochastic cellular automaton whose rules are derived from the corresponding coupled partial…
Chemical communication, response, and feedback are key requirements for the function of adaptive materials with life-like properties. However, how communication on the single cell-level impacts the collective structural, dynamical and…
Chemical signaling is one of the ubiquitous mechanisms by which inter-cellular communication takes place at the microscopic level, particularly via chemotaxis. Such multi-cellular systems are popularly studied using continuum, mean-field…
There are many processes in biology in which mechanical forces are generated. Force-bearing networks can transduce locally developed mechanical signals very extensively over different parts of the cell or tissues. In this article we conduct…
Models that invoke nonlinear wavefront propagation in a chemically excitable medium are rife in the biological literature. Indeed, the idea that wavefront propagation can serve as a signaling mechanism has often been invoked to explain…
Synchronization of activity among myocytes constituting vital organs, e.g., the heart, is crucial for physiological functions. Self-organized coordination in such heterogeneous ensemble of excitable and oscillatory cells is therefore of…
Chemical waves constitute a known class of dissipative structures emerging in reaction-diffusion systems. They play a crucial role in biology, spreading information rapidly to synchronize and coordinate biological events. We develop a…
Recent studies have revealed the complex structure of nerve signals in axons. There is experimental evidence that the propagation of an electrical signal (action potential) is accompanied by mechanical and thermal effects. In this paper,…
Complex spatial patterns in biological systems often arise through self-organization without a central coordination, guided by local interactions and chemical signaling. In this study, we explore how motility-dependent chemical deposition…
Many microorganisms use chemical `signaling' - a quintessential self-organizing strategy in non-equilibrium - that can induce spontaneous aggregation and coordination in behavior. Using synthetic signaling as a design principle, we…
A simple model is studied for the chemotactic movement of biological cells in the presence of a periodic chemical wave. It incorporates the feature of adaptation that may play an important role in allowing for ``rectified" chemotaxis:…
Oscillatory biochemical signals and mechanical forces must coordinate robustly during development, yet the principles governing their mutual coupling remain poorly understood. In syncytial embryos and cell-free extracts, mitotic waves…