Berlin 2015 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 53: Complex Fluids and Soft Matter (joint BP/DY/CPP)

BP 53.1: Talk

Friday, March 20, 2015, 09:30–09:45, H 1058

Anisotropic Diffusion of Macromolecules in the Contiguous Nucleocytoplasmic Fluid during Eukaryotic Cell Division — Nisha Pawar, Claudia Donth, and •Matthias Weiss — Experimental Physics I, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany

Protein diffusion in intracellular fluids is a crucial determinant of many vital biochemical pathways. Frequently an anomalous diffusion of macromolecules in the cytoplasm and nucleoplasm of eukaryotic cells has been reported, and associated changes in biochemical reactions have been discussed in some detail. Here we show that the contiguous nucleo-cytoplasmic fluid in dividing cells features an anisotropically varying diffusion of macromolecules [1]. In metaphase, diffusion in the contiguous nucleo-cytoplasmic fluid appears less anomalous along the spindle axis as compared to perpendicular directions. As a consequence, the long-time diffusion of macromolecules preferentially points along the spindle axis, leading to a prolonged residence of macromolecules in the spindle region. An anisotropic diffusion may support the dynamic formation of a spindle matrix which guides later steps in mitosis.

[1] N. Pawar, C. Donth, and M. Weiss, Curr. Biol. 24, 1905 (2014).