Journal
NEW JOURNAL OF PHYSICS
Volume 23, Issue 1, Pages -Publisher
IOP Publishing Ltd
DOI: 10.1088/1367-2630/abd2e4
Keywords
cytoskeleton; polymer networks; active matter; active gels; continuum mechanics
Categories
Funding
- National Science Foundation [DMR-1420073, DMS-1620331, DMR-2004469]
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Living matter moves, deforms, and organizes itself through polymer filaments and crosslinking molecules in cells. The theory presented predicts the material properties of highly crosslinked filament networks based on the forces exerted by microscopic agents. This work enhances the understanding of cytoskeletal mechanics and paves the way for designing cytoskeletal networks with desired properties in the laboratory.
Living matter moves, deforms, and organizes itself. In cells this is made possible by networks of polymer filaments and crosslinking molecules that connect filaments to each other and that act as motors to do mechanical work on the network. For the case of highly cross-linked filament networks, we discuss how the material properties of assemblies emerge from the forces exerted by microscopic agents. First, we introduce a phenomenological model that characterizes the forces that crosslink populations exert between filaments. Second, we derive a theory that predicts the material properties of highly crosslinked filament networks, given the crosslinks present. Third, we discuss which properties of crosslinks set the material properties and behavior of highly crosslinked cytoskeletal networks. The work presented here, will enable the better understanding of cytoskeletal mechanics and its molecular underpinnings. This theory is also a first step toward a theory of how molecular perturbations impact cytoskeletal organization, and provides a framework for designing cytoskeletal networks with desirable properties in the lab.
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