RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A mechanistic view of collective filament motion in active nematic networks
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 732909
DO 10.1101/732909
A1 Moritz Striebel
A1 Isabella R. Graf
A1 Erwin Frey
YR 2019
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2019/08/13/732909.abstract
AB Protein filament networks are structures crucial for force generation and cell shape. A central open question is how collective filament dynamics emerges from interactions between individual network constituents. To address this question we study a minimal but generic model for a nematic network where filament sliding is driven by the action of motor proteins. Our theoretical analysis shows how the interplay between viscous drag on filaments and motor-induced forces governs force propagation through such interconnected filament networks. We find that the ratio between these antagonistic forces establishes the range of filament interaction, which determines how the local filament velocity depends on the polarity of the surrounding network. This force propagation mechanism implies that the polarity-independent sliding observed in Xenopus egg extracts, and in-vitro experiments with purified components, is a consequence of a large force propagation length. We suggest how our predictions can be tested by tangible in vitro experiments whose feasibility is assessed with the help of simulations and an accompanying theoretical analysis.