Related papers: Elastically coupled molecular motors
Hydrodynamic equations for an isotropic solution of active polar filaments are derived from a microscopic mean-field model of the forces exchanged between motors and filaments. We find that a spatial dependence of the motor stepping rate…
Many swimming microorganisms, such as bacteria and sperm, use flexible flagella to move through viscoelastic media in their natural environments. In this paper we address the effects a viscoelastic fluid has on the motion and beating…
Evaluating accessible conformational space is computationally expensive and thermal motions are partly neglected in computer models of molecular interactions. This produces error into the estimates of binding strength. We introduce a method…
Dynamic properties of molecular motors whose motion is powered by interactions with specific lattice bonds are studied theoretically with the help of discrete-state stochastic "burnt-bridge" models. Molecular motors are depicted as random…
Bundles of filamentous polymers are primary structural components of a broad range of cytoskeletal structures, and their mechanical properties play key roles in cellular functions ranging from locomotion to mechanotransduction and…
The mitotic spindle lies at the heart of the spatio-temporal control over cellular components during cell division. The spindle consists of microtubules, which are not only crosslinked by motor proteins but also by passive binding proteins.…
The elastic backbone is the set of all shortest paths. We found a new phase transition at $p_{eb}$ above the classical percolation threshold at which the elastic backbone becomes dense. At this transition in $2d$ its fractal dimension is…
The propulsion of many eukaryotic cells is generated by flagella, flexible slender filaments that are actively oscillating in space and time. The dynamics of these biological appendages have inspired the design of many types of artificial…
Torsional oscillator experiments show evidence of mass decoupling in solid 4He. This decoupling is amplitude dependent, suggesting a critical velocity for supersolidity. We observe similar behavior in the elastic shear modulus. By measuring…
Several experiments have demonstrated the existence of an electro-mechanical effect in many biological tissues and hydrogels, and its actual influence on growth, migration, and pattern formation. Here, to model these interactions and…
Polar polymer activity is a fundamental mechanism behind a large number of cellular dynamical processes. The number and location of the active sites on the polymer backbone play a central role in their dynamics and conformational…
Passive mechanical response of skeletal muscles at fast time scales is dominated by long range interactions inducing cooperative behavior without breaking the detailed balance. This leads to such unusual "material properties" as negative…
Active filaments are a workhorse for propulsion and actuation across biology, soft robotics and mechanical metamaterials. However, artificial active rods suffer from limited robustness and adaptivity because they rely on external control,…
The exceptional adhesion properties of biological fibrillar structures -- such as those found in geckos -- have inspired the development of synthetic adhesive surfaces. Among these, mushroom-shaped fibrils have demonstrated superior…
Bone is mineralized tissue constituting the skeletal system, supporting and protecting body organs and tissues. At the molecular level, mineralized collagen fibril is the basic building block of bone tissue, and hence, understanding bone…
The cytoskeleton, consisting of biopolymer filaments, molecular motors, and passive crosslinking proteins, provides the internal structure of cells that facilitate movement, growth, and cell division. Understanding the microscopic…
Using a simple model, we study the fluctuating dynamics of inextensible, semiflexible polar filaments interacting with active and directed force generating centres such as molecular motors. Taking into account the fact that the activity…
The nonlinear mechanics of a flexible elastic rod constrained at its edges by a pair of sliding sleeves is analyzed. The planar equilibrium configurations of this variable-length elastica are found to have shape defined only by the…
Responding mechanically to environmental requests, muscles show a surprisingly large variety of functions. The studies of in vivo cycling muscles qualified skeletal muscles into four principal locomotor patterns: motor, brake, strut, and…
The cooperative action of many molecular motors is essential for dynamic processes such as cell motility and mitosis. This action can be studied by using motility assays in which the motion of cytoskeletal filaments over a surface coated…