Do Cell Membranes Flow Like Honey or Jiggle Like Jello?

Area of Science:

• Cell biology
• Biophysics
• Mechanobiology

Background:

• Cell membranes are constantly subjected to mechanical forces like stretching and poking.
• The propagation of membrane tension changes across a cell is poorly understood, with conflicting reports on its timescale.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and discuss how to reconcile contradictory findings on membrane tension propagation.
• To propose a mechanism by which cells actively regulate tension propagation.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature.
• Analysis within the framework of 2D hydrodynamics and poroelasticity.
• Theoretical proposal for active regulation of tension propagation.

Main Results:

• Contradictory findings on tension propagation timescales can be understood using hydrodynamic and poroelastic models.
• Localized membrane tension is critical for ion channel gating, vesicle fusion, and cytoskeletal dynamics.
• Cells may actively regulate tension propagation by altering transmembrane protein density and arrangement.

Conclusions:

• Understanding membrane tension propagation is key to cell mechanics and signaling.
• Cells possess mechanisms to control the spatial extent of mechanical responses.
• Modulation of transmembrane proteins offers a route for active regulation of cell membrane tension.