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Related Concept Videos

Mechanisms of Membrane-bending01:15

Mechanisms of Membrane-bending

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The living membranes are flexible due to their fluid mosaic nature; however, their bending into different shapes is an active process regulated by specific lipids and proteins. The membrane bending can be transient as seen in vesicles or stable for a long time as in microvilli. Cells regulate the size, location, and duration of the membrane curvature.
Membrane bending can happen due to intrinsic changes in lipid composition or extrinsic association with different proteins. The proteins involved...
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Fluid Mosaic Model01:19

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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...
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Membrane Fluidity01:23

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Cell membranes are composed of phospholipids, proteins, and carbohydrates loosely attached to one another through chemical interactions. Molecules are generally able to move about in the plane of the membrane, giving the membrane its flexible nature called fluidity. Two other features of the membrane contribute to membrane fluidity: the chemical structure of the phospholipids and the presence of cholesterol in the membrane.
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Mechanisms of Membrane Domain Formation00:59

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Different physical properties of lipids and proteins allow them to localize and form distinct islands or domains in the membrane. Some membrane domains are formed due to protein-protein interactions, whereas others are formed due to the presence of specific lipids such as sphingolipids and sterols—for example, large proteins, such as bacteriorhodopsin, aggregate and create distinct domains.
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Proteins show rotational as well as lateral diffusion across the membrane. The lateral diffusion of proteins was confirmed through the cell fusion experiment where mouse and human cells were fused, resulting in hybrid cells. When the human and mouse cells fused, the specific membrane proteins on human and mouse cells were marked with the red and green-fluorescent markers, respectively. Initially, the red and green fluorescence was located on the respective hemisphere of the cell. As time...
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Types of Membrane Protrusions01:28

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The protrusion of the cell surface is an initial step for several cellular processes, including cell migration, phagocytosis, and neurite outgrowth. These membrane protrusions are a result of cytoskeletal rearrangement. The most  widely observed cell protrusions include lamellipodia, pseudopodia, filopodia, microvilli, invadopodia, and podosomes. These protrusions can be of two types — static or dynamic.
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Updated: Jul 30, 2025

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Membrane curvature sensing by model biomolecular condensates.

Midhun Mohan Anila1, Rikhia Ghosh2, Bartosz Różycki1

  • 1Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Al. Lotnikow 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland. rozycki@ifpan.edu.pl.

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Biomolecular condensates (BCs) can form at cell membranes and sense curvature. These membrane-associated BCs may play a role in cellular processes like endocytosis.

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Area of Science:

  • Cell biology
  • Biophysics
  • Computational biology

Background:

  • Biomolecular condensates (BCs) are crucial for cellular functions, primarily studied in the nucleus and cytosol.
  • BCs at the cell membrane are less understood but increasingly recognized for their roles in biological processes.
  • Galectin-3, a key protein in endocytosis, forms BCs, but their function in membrane processes remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the behavior of generic biomolecular condensates (BCs) at lipid membranes using simulations.
  • To explore how BCs interact with and influence membrane structure and dynamics.
  • To elucidate a potential mechanism for membrane curvature sensing by BCs.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations.
  • Developed a coarse-grained polymer model mimicking BCs with specific interaction properties.
  • Simulated the interaction of these polymers with multi-component lipid membranes.

Main Results:

  • Polymers spontaneously formed droplets (BCs) at the membrane interface.
  • These BCs induced lateral lipid separation within the membrane.
  • The polymer droplets preferentially localized to inward-curved membrane regions, demonstrating curvature sensing.

Conclusions:

  • BCs can assemble at cell membranes and influence lipid organization.
  • BCs exhibit a generic mechanism for sensing membrane curvature.
  • This finding suggests a novel role for membrane-associated BCs in cellular processes like endocytosis.