Adhesion of surfaces via particle adsorption: Exact results for a lattice of fluid columns

We present here exact results for a one-dimensional gas, or fluid, of hard-sphere particles with attractive boundaries. The particles, which can exchange with a bulk reservoir, mediate an interaction between the boundaries. A two-dimensional lattice of such one-dimensional gas `columns' represents a discrete approximation of a three-dimensional gas of particles between two surfaces. The effective particle-mediated interaction potential of the boundaries, or surfaces, is calculated from the grand-canonical partition function of the one-dimensional gas of particles, which is an extension of the well-studied Tonks gas. The effective interaction potential exhibits two minima. The first minimum at boundary contact reflects depletion interactions, while the second minimum at separations close to the particle diameter results from a single adsorbed particle that crosslinks the two boundaries. The second minimum is the global minimum for sufficiently large binding energies of the particles. Interestingly, the effective adhesion energy corresponding to this minimum is maximal at intermediate concentrations of the particles.Comment: to appear in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experimen

Line Tension and Stability of Domains in Cell-Adhesion Zones Mediated by Long and Short Receptor-Ligand Complexes

Submicron scale domains of membrane-anchored receptors play an important role in cell signaling. Central questions concern the stability of these microdomains, and the mechanisms leading to the domain formation. In immune-cell adhesion zones, microdomains of short receptor-ligand complexes form next to domains of significantly longer receptor-ligand complexes. The length mismatch between the receptor-ligand complexes leads to membrane deformations and has been suggested as a possible cause of the domain formation. The domain formation is a nucleation and growth process that depends on the line tension and free energy of the domains. Using a combination of analytical calculations and Monte Carlo simulations, we derive here general expressions for the line tension between domains of long and short receptor-ligand complexes and for the adhesion free energy of the domains. We argue that the length mismatch of receptor-ligand complexes alone is sufficient to drive the domain formation, and obtain submicron-scale minimum sizes for stable domains that are consistent with the domain sizes observed during immune-cell adhesion

Stable patterns of membrane domains at corrugated substrates

Multi-component membranes such as ternary mixtures of lipids and cholesterol can exhibit coexistence regions between two liquid phases. When such membranes adhere to a corrugated substrate, the phase separation process strongly depends on the interplay between substrate topography, bending rigidities, and line tension of the membrane domains as we show theoretically via energy minimization and Monte Carlo simulations. For sufficiently large bending rigidity contrast between the two membrane phases, the corrugated substrate truncates the phase separation process and leads to a stable pattern of membrane domains. Our theory is consistent with recent experimental observations and provides a possible control mechanism for domain patterns in biological membranes.Comment: to appear in Physical Review Letter

Adhesion of membranes via receptor-ligand complexes: Domain formation, binding cooperativity, and active processes

Cell membranes interact via anchored receptor and ligand molecules. Central questions on cell adhesion concern the binding affinity of these membrane-anchored molecules, the mechanisms leading to the receptor-ligand domains observed during adhesion, and the role of cytoskeletal and other active processes. In this review, these questions are addressed from a theoretical perspective. We focus on models in which the membranes are described as elastic sheets, and the receptors and ligands as anchored molecules. In these models, the thermal membrane roughness on the nanometer scale leads to a cooperative binding of anchored receptor and ligand molecules, since the receptor-ligand binding smoothens out the membranes and facilitates the formation of additional bonds. Patterns of receptor domains observed in Monte Carlo simulations point towards a joint role of spontaneous and active processes in cell adhesion. The interactions mediated by the receptors and ligand molecules can be characterized by effective membrane adhesion potentials that depend on the concentrations and binding energies of the molecules.Comment: Review article, 13 pages, 9 figures, to appear in Soft Matte

Binding cooperativity of membrane adhesion receptors

The adhesion of cells is mediated by receptors and ligands anchored in apposing membranes. A central question is how to characterize the binding affinity of these membrane-anchored molecules. For soluble molecules, the binding affinity is typically quantified by the binding equilibrium constant K3D in the linear relation [RL] = K3D [R][L] between the volume concentration [RL] of bound complexes and the volume concentrations [R] and [L] of unbound molecules. For membrane-anchored molecules, it is often assumed by analogy that the area concentration of bound complexes [RL] is proportional to the product [R][L] of the area concentrations for the unbound receptor and ligand molecules. We show here (i) that this analogy is only valid for two planar membranes immobilized on rigid surfaces, and (ii) that the thermal roughness of flexible membranes leads to cooperative binding of receptors and ligands. In the case of flexible membranes, the area concentration [RL] of receptor-ligand bonds is proportional to the square of [R][L] for typical lengths and concentrations of receptors and ligands in cell adhesion zones. The cooperative binding helps to understand why different experimental methods for measuring the binding affinity of membrane-anchored molecules have led to values differing by several orders of magnitude.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures; to appear in Soft Matte

Drgania własne belki na stochastycznym dwuwarstwowym podłożu o znacznie różniących się grubościach

In this paper the influence of variability of Young modulus of the subsoil layers on the natural frequency of the beam-two-layered subsoil system was analyzed. Assuming the first layer was thinner and more rigid then the second one (10 and 20 times). The calculations were made by using deterministic and stochastic approach. In the stochastic approach, the spatial correlation of Young modulus of the subsoil along the length of both layers was taken into account. Two cases of the correlation were considered, i.e. without and with full correlation. Regarding the results of the authors’ research which were published in the previous article, in the calculations the full stochastic correlation of Young modulus of subsoil between both layers was taken into account. In order to solve the stochastic eigenvalue problem, Monte Carlo simulation techniques with Finite Element Method (FEM) were used. The present analysis is a continuation research demonstrated in the authors’ previous papers.  W artykule analizowano wpływ zmiany modułu Younga warstw podłoża gruntowego na częstości drgań własnych układu belka-dwuwarstwowe podłoże przy założeniu, że pierwsza warstwa podłoża jest znacznie cieńsza i sztywniejsza od drugiej. Taka nietypowa sytuacja stwarza czasem szczególne trudności w geotechnice. Obliczenia przeprowadzono najpierw w ujęciu deterministycznym, a następnie stochastycznym. W analizie stochastycznej założono przestrzenną korelację modułu Younga gruntu po długości każdej z warstw przyjmując dwa stopnie korelacji, korelację pełną lub jej brak. W obliczeniach uwzględniono pełną korelację modułu Younga gruntu pomiędzy warstwami, co wynika z badań, które autorzy zamieścili we wcześniejszej pracy. Do rozwiązania stochastycznego zagadnienia własnego zastosowano metodę Monte Carlo łącznie z metodą elementów skończonych (MES). Prezentowana analiza jest kontynuacją problematyki przedstawionej w poprzednich pracach autorów

Membrane-Mediated Cooperative Interactions of CD47 and SIRP<i>α</i>

The specific binding of the ubiquitous ‘marker of self’ protein CD47 to the SIRPα protein anchored in the macrophage plasma membrane results in the inhibition of the engulfment of ‘self’ cells by macrophages and thus constitutes a key checkpoint of our innate immune system. Consequently, the CD47–SIRPα protein complex has been recognized as a potential therapeutic target in cancer and inflammation. Here, we introduce a lattice-based mesoscale model for the biomimetic system studied recently in fluorescence microscopy experiments where GFP-tagged CD47 proteins on giant plasma membrane vesicles bind to SIRPα proteins immobilized on a surface. Computer simulations of the lattice-based mesoscale model allow us to study the biomimetic system on multiple length scales, ranging from single nanometers to several micrometers and simultaneously keep track of single CD47–SIRPα binding and unbinding events. Our simulations not only reproduce data from the fluorescence microscopy experiments but also are consistent with results of several other experiments, which validates our numerical approach. In addition, our simulations yield quantitative predictions on the magnitude and range of effective, membrane-mediated attraction between CD47–SIRPα complexes. Such detailed information on CD47–SIRPα interactions cannot be obtained currently from experiments alone. Our simulation results thus extend the present understanding of cooperative effects in CD47–SIRPα interactions and may have an influence on the advancement of new cancer treatments