Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 9, 2026
10:08
Phase Behavior of Charged Vesicles Under Symmetric and Asymmetric Solution Conditions Monitored with Fluorescence Microscopy
Published on: October 24, 2017
Dynamics of multicomponent vesicles in a viscous fluid.
Jin Sun Sohn1, Yu-Hau Tseng, Shuwang Li
1Department of Mathematics, University of California, Irvine, USA.
Journal of Computational Physics
|September 3, 2010
Summary
We developed a numerical model for multicomponent vesicles in fluid, revealing how lipid phase redistribution alters vesicle shape and dynamics. Shear flow induces steady shapes and complex morphological evolution in vesicles with varying properties.
Area of Science:
- Fluid dynamics
- Biophysics
- Materials science
Background:
- Vesicles, essential biological structures, exhibit complex behaviors influenced by their composition and environment.
- Understanding multicomponent vesicle dynamics is crucial for cell biology and biomaterial design.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and numerically investigate a thermodynamically consistent model for two-dimensional multicomponent vesicles in viscous fluid.
- To analyze the influence of lipid surface phase distribution on vesicle morphology and dynamics.
- To explore vesicle behavior under shear flow, considering variations in bending stiffness and spontaneous curvature.
Main Methods:
- Energy variation approach to derive the model, incorporating line energy, bending energy, spontaneous curvature, and inextensibility.
- High-order, nonlinear, and nonlocal equations solved using a nonstiff, pseudo-spectral boundary integral method.
- Numerical simulations of vesicle behavior in quiescent and sheared fluids, with varying lipid phase concentrations.
Main Results:
- Lipid phase redistribution significantly alters vesicle morphology and dynamics.
- Under shear flow, vesicles achieve steady shapes and surface phase distributions.
- Vesicle tumbling and complex morphological evolution occur due to variations in bending stiffness and spontaneous curvature.
Conclusions:
- The developed model accurately captures the complex behavior of multicomponent vesicles.
- Lipid phase heterogeneity plays a critical role in vesicle shape, dynamics, and response to flow.
- This work provides insights into the physical principles governing vesicle behavior in biological and synthetic systems.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:19Viscosity of Fluid
Viscosity measures the resistance a fluid offers to flow and deformation. It results from internal friction between layers of fluid moving relative to one another. Dynamic viscosity, denoted by the Greek letter mu (μ), quantifies the force needed to move one fluid layer over another. For Newtonian fluids like water and air, the relationship between the shearing stress and the rate of shearing strain is linear, meaning their viscosity remains constant regardless of the applied stress.
01:34Fluid Mosaic Model
The fluid mosaic model was first proposed as a visual representation of research observations. The model comprises the composition and dynamics of membranes and serves as a foundation for future membrane-related studies. The model depicts the structure of the plasma membrane with a variety of components, which include phospholipids, proteins, and carbohydrates. These integral molecules are loosely bound, defining the cell’s border and providing fluidity for optimal function.LipidsThe most...
01:19Fluid Mosaic Model
Scientists identified the plasma membrane in the 1890s and its principal chemical components (lipids and proteins) by 1915. The model for plasma membrane structure, proposed in 1935 by Hugh Davson and James Danielli, was the first model to be widely accepted in the scientific community. The model was based on the plasma membrane's "railroad track" appearance in early electron micrographs. Davson and Danielli theorized that the plasma membrane's structure resembled a sandwich with the analogy of...
01:20Stokes' Law
Viscous forces, like friction, are intermolecular forces that resist the relative motion of molecules over each other. When a solid body moves through a liquid, viscous forces drag it in the opposite direction. The force's magnitude depends on the solid's shape and size, as well as its speed and the liquid's coefficient of viscosity, density and temperature.
The expression for the force on a solid spherical object in a fluid is called Stokes' law. Stokes' law is valid only for low Reynolds...
The expression for the force on a solid spherical object in a fluid is called Stokes' law. Stokes' law is valid only for low Reynolds...
01:32Pinching-off of Coated Vesicles
Vesicle budding is orchestrated by distinct cytosolic proteins such as adaptor proteins, coat proteins, and GTPases. To initiate vesicle budding, membrane-bending proteins containing crescent-shaped BAR domains bind to the lipid heads in the bilayer and distort the membrane to form a protein-coated vesicle bud. Adaptors proteins such as AP2 for clathrin-coated vesicles can nucleate on the deformed membrane. Finally, coat proteins such as clathrin or COPI and COPII assemble into a coat forming...
01:17Viscosity
When water is poured into a glass, it falls freely and quickly, whereas if honey or maple syrup is poured over a pancake, it flows slowly and sticks to the surface of the container. This difference in the flow of different kinds of liquids arises due to the fluid friction between the liquid layers and the liquid and the surrounding material. This property of fluids is called fluid viscosity. In this example, water has a lower viscosity than honey and maple syrup.
The SI unit of viscosity is...
The SI unit of viscosity is...