Is actin filament and microtubule growth reaction- or diffusion-limited?
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Pausch, Johannes
Pruessner, Gunnar
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Inside cells of living organisms, actin filaments and microtubules selfassemble and dissemble dynamically by incorporating actin or tubulin from the cell plasma or releasing it into their tips’ surroundings. Such reaction-diffusion systems can show diffusion- or reaction-limited behaviour. However, neither limit explains the experimental data: while the offset of the linear relation between growth speed and bulk tubulin density contradicts the diffusion limit, the surprisingly large variance of the growth speed rejects a pure reaction limit. In this article, we accommodate both limits and use a Doi-Peliti field-theory model to estimate how diffusive transport is perturbing the chemical reactions at the filament tip. Furthermore, a crossover bulk
density is predicted at which the limiting process changes from chemical reactions to diffusive transport. In addition, we explain and estimate larger variances of the growth speed.
density is predicted at which the limiting process changes from chemical reactions to diffusive transport. In addition, we explain and estimate larger variances of the growth speed.
Date Issued
2019-05
Date Acceptance
2019-02-18
Citation
Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment, 2019, 2019
ISSN
1742-5468
Publisher
IOP Publishing
Journal / Book Title
Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment
Volume
2019
Copyright Statement
© 2019 IOP Publishing Ltd and SISSA Medialab srl. This is an author-created, un-copyedited version of an article accepted for publication in the Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experiment (JSTAT). IOP Publishing Ltd is not responsible for any errors or omissions in this version of the manuscript or any version derived from it. The definitive publisher authenticated version is available online at https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-5468/ab081c.
Sponsor
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Subjects
Science & Technology
Technology
Physical Sciences
Mechanics
Physics, Mathematical
Physics
biopolymers
mechanical properties
DYNAMIC INSTABILITY
ASSEMBLY DYNAMICS
POLYMERIZATION
ASSOCIATION
KINETICS
TUBULIN
0105 Mathematical Physics
0203 Classical Physics
Fluids & Plasmas
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 053501
Date Publish Online
2019-05-23