Coffee stains, cell receptors, and time crystals: Lessons from the old literature

Perhaps the most important reason to understand the deep history of a field is that it is the right thing to do.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Cytoplasmic Streaming in Plant Cells Emerges Naturally by Microfilament Self-Organization

Many cells exhibit large-scale active circulation of their entire fluid contents, a process termed cytoplasmic streaming. This phenomenon is particularly prevalent in plant cells, often presenting strikingly regimented flow patterns. The driving mechanism in such cells is known: myosin-coated organelles entrain cytoplasm as they process along actin filament bundles fixed at the periphery. Still unknown, however, is the developmental process which constructs the well-ordered actin configurations required for coherent cell-scale flow. Previous experimental works on streaming regeneration in cells of Characean algae, whose longitudinal flow is perhaps the most regimented of all, hint at an autonomous process of microfilament self-organization driving the formation of streaming patterns during morphogenesis. Working from first principles, we propose a robust model of streaming emergence that combines motor dynamics with both micro- and macroscopic hydrodynamics to explain how several independent processes, each ineffectual on its own, can reinforce to ultimately develop the patterns of streaming observed in the Characeae and other streaming species.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures; SI text available at article on pnas.or

Minimal continuum theories of structure formation in dense active fluids

Self-sustained dynamical phases of living matter can exhibit remarkable similarities over a wide range of scales, from mesoscopic vortex structures in microbial suspensions and motility assays of biopolymers to turbulent large-scale instabilities in flocks of birds or schools of fish. Here, we argue that, in many cases, the phenomenology of such active states can be efficiently described in terms of fourth- and higher-order partial differential equations. Structural transitions in these models can be interpreted as Landau-type kinematic transitions in Fourier (wavenumber) space, suggesting that microscopically different biological systems can share universal long-wavelength features. This general idea is illustrated through numerical simulations for two classes of continuum models for incompressible active fluids: a Swift-Hohenberg-type scalar field theory, and a minimal vector model that extends the classical Toner-Tu theory and appears to be a promising candidate for the quantitive description of dense bacterial suspensions. We also discuss briefly how microscopic symmetry-breaking mechanisms can enter macroscopic continuum descriptions of collective microbial motion near surfaces and conclude by outlining future applications.Comment: 22 pages, 6 figures, text extended, App A added, references updated/adde

Ciliary contact interactions dominate surface scattering of swimming eukaryotes

Interactions between swimming cells and surfaces are essential to many microbiological processes, from bacterial biofilm formation to human fertilization. However, in spite of their fundamental importance, relatively little is known about the physical mechanisms that govern the scattering of flagellated or ciliated cells from solid surfaces. A more detailed understanding of these interactions promises not only new biological insights into structure and dynamics of flagella and cilia, but may also lead to new microfluidic techniques for controlling cell motility and microbial locomotion, with potential applications ranging from diagnostic tools to therapeutic protein synthesis and photosynthetic biofuel production. Due to fundamental differences in physiology and swimming strategies, it is an open question whether microfluidic transport and rectification schemes that have recently been demonstrated for pusher-type microswimmers such as bacteria and sperm cells, can be transferred to puller-type algae and other motile eukaryotes, as it is not known whether long-range hydrodynamic or short-range mechanical forces dominate the surface interactions of these microorganisms. Here, using high-speed microscopic imaging, we present direct experimental evidence that the surface scattering of both mammalian sperm cells and unicellular green algae is primarily governed by direct ciliary contact interactions. Building on this insight, we predict and verify experimentally the existence of optimal microfluidic ratchets that maximize rectification of initially uniform Chlamydomonas reinhardtii suspensions. Since mechano-elastic properties of cilia are conserved across eukaryotic species, we expect that our results apply to a wide range of swimming microorganisms.Comment: Preprint as accepted for publication in PNAS, for published journal version (open access) and Supporting Information see http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.121054811