Flexural Rigidity and Shear Stiffness of Flagella Estimated from Induced Bends and Counterbends.

ABSTRACT: Motile cilia and flagella are whiplike cellular organelles that bend actively to propel cells or move fluid in passages such as airways, brain ventricles, and the oviduct. Efficient motile function of cilia and flagella depends on coordinated interactions between active forces from an array of motor proteins and passive mechanical resistance from the complex cytoskeletal structure (the axoneme). However, details of this coordination, including axonemal mechanics, remain unclear. We investigated two major mechanical parameters, flexural rigidity and interdoublet shear stiffness, of the flagellar axoneme in the unicellular alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Combining experiment, theory, and finite element models, we demonstrate that the apparent flexural rigidity of the axoneme depends on both

SUBMITTER: Xu G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4919507 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature