相关论文: Fluctuation-Driven Molecular Transport in an Asymm…
Transport of colloid particles through narrow channels is ubiquitous in cell biology as well as becoming increasingly important for microfluidic applications or targeted drug delivery. Membrane channels in cells are useful models for…
We propose a novel mechanism of cell motility, which relies on the coupling of actin polymerization at the cell membrane to geometric confinement. We consider a polymerizing viscoelastic cytoskeletal gel confined in a narrow channel, and…
The effect of curvature and how it induces and enhances the transport of colloidal particles driven through narrow channels represent an unexplored research avenue. Here we combine experiments and simulations to investigate the dynamics of…
The migratory dynamics of cells can be influenced by the complex micro-environment through which they move. It remains unclear how the motility machinery of confined cells responds and adapts to their micro-environment. Here, we propose a…
Symmetry is closely intertwined with the function, genetics, and chemical properties of multiprotein complexes. Here, we explore the relation between structural symmetry and the ability of membrane proteins to sense and induce membrane…
Based on experimental observations it is known that various biological cells exhibit a persistent random walk during migration on flat substrates. The persistent random walk is characterized by `stop-and-go' movements : unidirectional…
Flux of rigid or soft particles (such as drops, vesicles, red blood cells, etc.) in a channel is a complex function of particle concentration, which depends on the details of induced dissipation and suspension structure due to hydrodynamic…
The controlled motion of objects through narrow channels is important in many fields. We have fabricated asymmetric weak-pinning channels in a superconducting thin-film strip for controlling the dynamics of vortices. The lack of pinning…
In these lectures I discuss long-scale properties of fluctuating polymerized membranes in the presence of network anisotropy and random heterogeneities. Amazingly, even infinitesimal amount of these seemingly innocuous but physically…
Nuclear pore complexes are constantly confronted by large fluxes of macromolecules and macromolecular complexes that need to get into and out of the nucleus. Such bi-directional traffic occurring in a narrow channel can easily lead to…
In cell membranes, proteins and lipids diffuse in a highly crowded and heterogeneous landscape, where aggregates and dense domains of proteins or lipids obstruct the path of diffusing molecules. In general, hindered motion gives rise to…
Channel-mediated transport is ubiquitous in biology. A series of works by different theoreticians have sought to determine how the diffusive flux through a channel depends on (a) stochastic gating, (b) channel geometry, and (c)…
Metabolic substrates, such as oxygen and glucose, are rapidly delivered to the cell through filtration across microvessels walls. Modelling this important process is complicated by the coupling between flow and transport equations, which…
Cells and organisms follow aligned structures in their environment, a process that can generate persistent migration paths. Kinetic transport equations are a popular modelling tool for describing biological movements at the mesoscopic…
Asymmetric partition of fate determinants during cell division is a hallmark of cell differentiation. Recent work suggested that such a mechanism is hijacked by cancer cells to increase both their phenotypic heterogeneity and plasticity and…
Recent research has shown that motile cells can adapt their mode of propulsion to the mechanical properties of the environment in which they find themselves--crawling in some environments while swimming in others. The latter can involve…
The diffusive transport of biased Brownian particles in a two-dimensional symmetric channel is investigated numerically considering both the no-flow and the reflection boundary conditions at the channel boundaries. Here, the geometrical…
Locomotion is essential for living cells. It enables bacteria and algae to explore space for food, cancer to spread, and immune system to fight infections. Motile cells display trajectories of intriguing complexity, from regular (e.g.…
The mechanics of cells is strongly affected by molecular motors that generate forces in the cellular cytoskeleton. We develop a model for cytoskeletal networks driven out of equilibrium by molecular motors exerting transient contractile…
The cytoskeleton in eukaryotic cells plays several crucial roles. In terms of intracellular transport, motor proteins use the cytoskeletal filaments as a backbone along which they can actively transport biological cargos such as vesicles…