Regensburg 2013 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 24: Posters: Physics of Cells

BP 24.15: Poster

Wednesday, March 13, 2013, 17:30–19:30, Poster C

Amoeboid motion based on membrane folds that are driven by self organized actin waves. — •Matthias Gerhardt, Michael Walz, and Carsten Beta — Institut für Physik und Astronomie, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24/25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany

We observed the movement of small particles enclosed in between the bottom membrane of a large electrofused Dicyostelium cell and the substrate surface. Self-organized waves generated by the actin network inside the cell were reliably pushing the particles forward, indicating that actin waves are generating forces against the cell membrane to push the cell forward. A vertical scan through the self-organized waves revealed that under certain conditions, waves can locally lift the cell membrane to form a small cavity in between the membrane and the substrate surface. These observations led us to propose a novel mechanism for amoeboid motion based on the wave-driven motion of membrane folds across the bottom surface of the cell. We have implemented a simple computer model that consists of a virtual membrane driven by the waves of an excitable FitzHugh-Nagumo system. Depending on the choice of parameters and initial conditions, the virtual membrane was found to move in the direction of wave propagation along either linear or curved trajectories.