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Related Concept Videos

Mechanism of Ciliary Motion01:05

Mechanism of Ciliary Motion

The ciliary structures were first seen in 1647 by Antonie Leeuwenhoek while observing the protozoans. In lower organisms, these appendages are responsible for cell movement, while in higher organisms, these appendages help in the movement of the extracellular fluids within the body cavities.
The cilia are made up of microtubules in a 9+2 arrangement, with nine microtubule doublet ring bundles, surrounding a pair of central singlet microtubule bundles. The doublet microtubule bundles are...
Mechanism of Ciliary Motion01:05

Mechanism of Ciliary Motion

The ciliary structures were first seen in 1647 by Antonie Leeuwenhoek while observing the protozoans. In lower organisms, these appendages are responsible for cell movement, while in higher organisms, these appendages help in the movement of the extracellular fluids within the body cavities.
The cilia are made up of microtubules in a 9+2 arrangement, with nine microtubule doublet ring bundles, surrounding a pair of central singlet microtubule bundles. The doublet microtubule bundles are...
Microtubules in Cell Motility01:24

Microtubules in Cell Motility

Microtubules are thick hollow cylindrical proteins that help form the cytoskeleton. Microtubules have varied roles in the cell. These filaments help form cellular appendages like cilia and flagella, which are responsible for locomotion. The cilia arise from basal bodies, separated from the main body by a membrane-like structure forming the transition zone. This zone is the gate for the entry of lipids and proteins, creating a unique composition of lipids and proteins in the ciliary membrane and...
Mechanism of Filopodia Formation01:39

Mechanism of Filopodia Formation

Filopodia are thin, actin-rich cellular protrusions that play an important role in many fundamental cellular functions. They vary in their occurrence, length, and positioning in different cell types, suggesting their diverse roles.
Their main function is to guide migrating cells during normal tissue morphogenesis or cancer metastasis by recognizing and making initial contacts with the extracellular matrix. However, they can also act as stationary cell anchors or help to establish communication...
Microtubules in Signaling01:22

Microtubules in Signaling

The primary cilium, made up of microtubules, acts as antennae on the cell surfaces for relaying external stimuli into the cells. These fine hair-like structures are present, generally one per cell. These are non-motile cilia in a 9+0 microtubules arrangement, where the central pair of microtubules are absent. The primary cilia arise from the basal body embedded in the cell membrane. Intraflagellar transport (IFT) carries requisite proteins from the cytoplasm to the cilium because the primary...
Assembly of Cytoskeletal Filaments01:18

Assembly of Cytoskeletal Filaments

Cytoskeletal filaments are polymeric forms of smaller protein subunits. However, individual cytoskeletal filaments may easily disassemble or associate with other similar filaments to form rigid structures. Microfilaments, made of actin monomers, rely on actin-binding proteins to form bundles and create networks of individual actin filaments. Microtubules rely on microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) to form sturdy cylindrical structures. However, the proteins involved in forming complex...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Artificial Intelligence Approaches to Assessing Primary Cilia
08:58

Artificial Intelligence Approaches to Assessing Primary Cilia

Published on: May 1, 2021

Self-assembled artificial cilia.

Mojca Vilfan1, Anton Potocnik, Blaz Kavcic

  • 1J Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia. mojca.vilfan@ijs.si

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|November 26, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers developed a biomimetic cilia pump using superparamagnetic particles actuated by magnetic fields. This novel microfluidic pumping device effectively generates fluid flow, mimicking natural cilia motion for enhanced microscale applications.

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Collection, Expansion, and Differentiation of Primary Human Nasal Epithelial Cell Models for Quantification of Cilia Beat Frequency
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Collection, Expansion, and Differentiation of Primary Human Nasal Epithelial Cell Models for Quantification of Cilia Beat Frequency

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Last Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Artificial Intelligence Approaches to Assessing Primary Cilia
08:58

Artificial Intelligence Approaches to Assessing Primary Cilia

Published on: May 1, 2021

Self-Assembly of Microtubule Tactoids
08:49

Self-Assembly of Microtubule Tactoids

Published on: June 23, 2022

Collection, Expansion, and Differentiation of Primary Human Nasal Epithelial Cell Models for Quantification of Cilia Beat Frequency
11:13

Collection, Expansion, and Differentiation of Primary Human Nasal Epithelial Cell Models for Quantification of Cilia Beat Frequency

Published on: November 10, 2021

Area of Science:

  • Microfluidics
  • Biomimetics
  • Soft Matter Physics
  • Nanotechnology

Background:

  • Microfluidic devices operate at low Reynolds numbers, where viscous forces dominate over inertial forces.
  • Efficient fluid manipulation, including mixing and pumping, is challenging in microfluidic systems due to low Reynolds number hydrodynamics.
  • Traditional microfluidic pumping methods often require complex fabrication or external infrastructure.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To design and realize an effective fluid pumping device for microfluidic applications.
  • To mimic the motion of natural cilia using artificial biomimetic structures for fluid propulsion.
  • To investigate the performance of a magnetic field-actuated biomimetic cilia pump.

Main Methods:

  • Self-assembly of spherical superparamagnetic particles into long chains to form artificial cilia.
  • Actuation of artificial cilia using an external magnetic field in a nonreciprocal manner to generate fluid flow.
  • Experimental measurement of fluid velocity above the ciliated surface and numerical simulations to validate performance.

Main Results:

  • Successful realization of a biomimetic cilia pump capable of generating directed fluid flow.
  • Demonstration that fluid velocity is dependent on the height above the ciliated surface.
  • Numerical simulations accurately reproduced experimental data, confirming the pumping mechanism and performance.
  • Investigation into the influence of cilia beating asymmetry on pumping efficiency.

Conclusions:

  • Artificial biomimetic cilia, constructed from self-assembled superparamagnetic particle chains, can effectively pump fluids in microfluidic devices.
  • Magnetic field actuation provides a simple and controllable method for generating fluid flow via nonreciprocal cilia motion.
  • The developed cilia pump shows promise as an alternative to conventional microfluidic pumping strategies.