Instability and front propagation in laser-tweezed lipid bilayer tubules

We study the mechanism of the `pearling' instability seen recently in experiments on lipid tubules under a local applied laser intensity. We argue that the correct boundary conditions are fixed chemical potentials, or surface tensions \Sigma, at the laser spot and the reservoir in contact with the tubule. We support this with a microscopic picture which includes the intensity profile of the laser beam, and show how this leads to a steady-state flow of lipid along the surface and gradients in the local lipid concentration and surface tension (or chemical potential). This leads to a natural explanation for front propagation and makes several predictions based on the tubule length. While most of the qualitative conclusions of previous studies remain the same, the `ramped' control parameter (surface tension) implies several new qualitative results. We also explore some of the consequences of front propagation into a noisy (due to pre-existing thermal fluctuations) unstable medium.Comment: 12 page latex + figures using epsf.sty to be published in Journal de Physique II, January 199

Significant features of ⁸B scattering from ²⁰⁸Pb at 170.3 MeV

The scattering of proton-halo nucleus 8B from 208Pb at 170.3 MeV is shown to reveal a distinctive pattern in the change in |SL| that is induced by coupling to breakup channels. The same pattern had been found for 8B scattering from 58Ni at 30 MeV, an energy near the Coulomb barrier, and has been linked to various other respects in which scattering for this proton-halo nucleus differs from that of other light, weakly bound nuclei. The increase in |SL | forL < 80, induced by breakup coupling, is associated with a substantial repulsive region in the dynamic polarization potential as determined by exact inversion. This repulsion appears to reduce the penetration of the projectile into the absorptive region of the interaction. This accounts for the fact that the increase in the total reaction cross section, due to breakup, is much less than the breakup cross section, and is consistent with the relatively small effect of breakup on the elastic scattering angular distribution compared with the large breakup cross section

Dynamic polarization potential due to ⁶Li breakup on ¹²C

For 6Li scattering from 12C at five laboratory energies from 90 to 318 MeV, we study the dynamic polarization potential, DPP, due to the breakup of the projectile. The breakup is evaluated using standard continuum discretized coupled-channels formalism applied to a two-body cluster model of the projectile. The DPP is evaluated over a wide radial range using both direct S-matrix-to-potential inversion and trivially equivalent local potential methods which yield substantially and systematically different results. The radius at which the real DPP changes from external repulsion to interior attraction varies systematically with energy. This should be experimentally testable because, according to notch tests, this crossover radius is within a radial range to which elastic scattering should be sensitive. The imaginary DPP has an emissive (generative) region at the lower energies; this may be associated with counterintuitive properties of |SL|

Budding and Domain Shape Transformations in Mixed Lipid Films and Bilayer Membranes

We study the stability and shapes of domains with spontaneous curvature in fluid films and membranes, embedded in a surrounding membrane with zero spontaneous curvature. These domains can result from the inclusion of an impurity in a fluid membrane, or from phase separation within the membrane. We show that for small but finite line and surface tensions and for finite spontaneous curvatures, an equilibrium phase of protruding circular domains is obtained at low impurity concentrations. At higher concentrations, we predict a transition from circular domains, or "caplets", to stripes. In both cases, we calculate the shapes of these domains within the Monge representation for the membrane shape. With increasing line tension, we show numerically that there is a budding transformation from stable protruding circular domains to spherical buds. We calculate the full phase diagram, and demonstrate a two triple points, of respectively bud-flat-caplet and flat-stripe-caplet coexistence.Comment: 14 pages, to appear in Phys Rev

Deformation of crosslinked semiflexible polymer networks

Networks of filamentous proteins play a crucial role in cell mechanics. These cytoskeletal networks, together with various crosslinking and other associated proteins largely determine the (visco)elastic response of cells. In this letter we study a model system of crosslinked, stiff filaments in order to explore the connection between the microstructure under strain and the macroscopic response of cytoskeletal networks. We find two distinct regimes as a function primarily of crosslink density and filament rigidity: one characterized by affine deformation and one by non-affine deformation. We characterize the crossover between these two.Comment: Typos fixed and some technical details clarified. To appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Non-equilibrium mechanics and dynamics of motor activated gels

The mechanics of cells is strongly affected by molecular motors that generate forces in the cellular cytoskeleton. We develop a model for cytoskeletal networks driven out of equilibrium by molecular motors exerting transient contractile stresses. Using this model we show how motor activity can dramatically increase the network's bulk elastic moduli. We also show how motor binding kinetics naturally leads to enhanced low-frequency stress fluctuations that result in non-equilibrium diffusive motion within an elastic network, as seen in recent \emph{in vitro} and \emph{in vivo} experiments.Comment: 21 pages, 8 figure

V.—Glacial Drift of the Central Part of the Lake District, up to 2800 feet above the Sea

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Poisson's ratio in composite elastic media with rigid rods

We study the elastic response of composites of rods embedded in elastic media. We calculate the micro-mechanical response functions, and bulk elastic constants as functions of rod density. We find two fixed points for Poisson's ratio with respect to the addition of rods in 3D composites: there is an unstable fixed point for Poisson's ratio=1/2 (an incompressible system) and a stable fixed point for Poisson's ratio=1/4 (a compressible system). We also derive an approximate expression for the elastic constants for arbitrary rod density that yields exact results for both low and high density. These results may help to explain recent experiments [Physical Review Letters 102, 188303 (2009)] that reported compressibility for composites of microtubules in F-actin networks.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Microtubule Elasticity: Connecting All-Atom Simulations with Continuum Mechanics

The mechanical properties of microtubules have been extensively studied using a wide range of biophysical techniques, seeking to understand the mechanics of these cylindrical polymers. Here we develop a method for connecting all-atom molecular dynamics simulations with continuum mechanics and show how this can be applied to understand microtubule mechanics. Our coarse-graining technique applied to the microscopic simulation system yields consistent predictions for the Young's modulus and persistence length of microtubules, while clearly demonstrating how binding of the drug Taxol decreases the stiffness of microtubules. The techniques we develop should be widely applicable to other macromolecular systems. © 2010 The American Physical Society