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Lateral membrane waves constitute a universal dynamic pattern of motile cells.
Hans-Günther Döbereiner1, Benjamin J Dubin-Thaler, Jake M Hofman
1Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, USA. hgd@biophysik.uni-bremen.de
Physical Review Letters
|August 16, 2006
Summary
Cell movement involves coordinated waves of protrusion and retraction along the membrane. This spatiotemporal pattern reveals long-range correlations in the actomyosin cytoskeleton across diverse cell types.
Area of Science:
- Cell biology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Cellular functions rely on dynamic membrane remodeling.
- Actomyosin networks drive cell shape changes and movement.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the spatiotemporal patterns of cell membrane velocity.
- To identify commonalities in membrane dynamics across diverse cell types.
Main Methods:
- Monitoring active cell circumference movements on specifically coated substrates.
- Utilizing various cell types: mouse embryonic fibroblasts, T cells, and fruit fly wing disk cells.
Main Results:
- Identified a common spatiotemporal pattern in normal membrane velocity across different cell types.
- Demonstrated that cell protrusion and retraction events are organized in lateral waves along the cell membrane.
- Observed that these wave patterns reflect long-range spatial and temporal correlations within the actomyosin gel.
Conclusions:
- Diverse cell types exhibit conserved membrane dynamics characterized by coordinated waves.
- Cellular membrane waves are indicative of underlying long-range order in the actomyosin cytoskeleton.