Dresden 2006 – scientific programme
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AKB: Biologische Physik
AKB 3: Cell Motility I
AKB 3.2: Talk
Monday, March 27, 2006, 12:00–12:15, ZEU 255
Dynamics of Cilia and Flagella — •Andreas Hilfinger1, Ingmar Riedel2, Amit Chattopadhyay3, Karsten Kruse1, Jonathon Howard2, and Frank Jülicher1 — 1Max-Planck-Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, Dresden — 2Max-Planck-Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden — 3Mathematics Institute, University of Warwick, UK
Directed motion on the level of single cells is in many cases achieved through the beating of whip like appendages (cilia or flagella). These organelles contain a highly conserved structure called the axoneme, whose characteristic architecture is based on a cylindrical arrangement of elastic filaments (microtubules). In the presence of ATP, molecular motors (dynein) exert shear forces between neighbouring microtubules, leading to a bending of the axoneme through structural constraints.
We present a theoretical description of such an elastic cylinder, driven by internally generated stresses and show that self-organised bending waves emerge from a non-oscillatory state via a dynamic instability. The corresponding beat patterns are solutions to a non-linear wave equation with appropriate boundary conditions. We discuss three-dimensional beat patterns that resemble the vortical motion of nodal cilia, which play an important role in establishing the left-right axis of embryos in many vertebrate species.