PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Andrei Lipchinsky TI - Osmophoresis – a possible mechanism for vesicle trafficking in tip-growing cells AID - 10.1101/029157 DP - 2015 Jan 01 TA - bioRxiv PG - 029157 4099 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2015/10/14/029157.short 4100 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2015/10/14/029157.full AB - A mechanism for polarized transport of vesicles by means of osmotic propulsions is proposed and substantiated for tip-growing cells. An analysis is presented which shows that in pollen tubes the gradient of cytosolic water potential can drive vesicle movement either in the anterograde or retrograde direction, depending on the vesicle position, its radius and the phase of growth oscillation. The importance of transcellular water flow for cytoskeletal dynamics and cell motility is highlighted.