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Updated: Mar 27, 2026

The Mechanics of Poro-Elastic Contractile Actomyosin Networks As a Model System of the Cell Cytoskeleton
Published on: March 10, 2023
Non-periodic oscillatory deformation of an actomyosin microdroplet encapsulated within a lipid interface
Yukinori Nishigami1, Hiroaki Ito1, Seiji Sonobe2
1Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Abstract:
Active force generation in living organisms, which is mainly involved in actin cytoskeleton and myosin molecular motors, plays a crucial role in various biological processes. Although the contractile properties of actomyosin have been extensively investigated, their dynamic contribution to a deformable membrane remains unclear because of the cellular complexities and the difficulties associated with in vitro reconstitution. Here, by overcoming these experimental difficulties, we demonstrate the dynamic deformation of a reconstituted lipid interface coupled with self-organized structure of contractile actomyosin. Therein, the lipid interface repeatedly oscillates without any remarkable periods. The oscillatory deformation of the interface is caused by the aster-like three-dimensional hierarchical structure of actomyosin inside the droplet, which is revealed that the oscillation occurs stochastically as a Poisson process.
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