Membrane buckling induced by curved filaments

Area of Science:

• Cell biology
• Biophysics
• Membrane dynamics

Background:

• Membrane budding is crucial for eukaryotic cell function.
• The physical mechanisms driving membrane shape changes are not fully understood.
• Filament-cell interactions play a role in cellular processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and analyze a novel buckling instability mechanism for membrane budding.
• To investigate the role of curved filament adsorption in lipid bilayer destabilization.
• To explain the formation of tubular structures during membrane remodeling.

Main Methods:

• Linear stability analysis of filament-dressed lipid bilayers.
• Numerical simulations of strongly deformed dressed membranes.
• Bifurcation analysis to map membrane behavior.

Main Results:

• A novel buckling instability mechanism is identified.
• The buckling threshold is predicted to occur within physiologically relevant in vivo parameter ranges.
• The mechanism successfully accounts for the formation of long cellular tubes.
• Numerical analysis reveals the bifurcation diagram of deformed membranes.

Conclusions:

• The proposed buckling instability provides a new physical explanation for membrane budding.
• This mechanism is consistent with experimental observations of tube formation in cellular and purified systems.
• The findings suggest a simple experimental approach for validation.