Scaling behaviour in steady-state contracting actomyosin networks.

ABSTRACT: Contractile actomyosin network flows are crucial for many cellular processes including cell division and motility, morphogenesis and transport. How local remodeling of actin architecture tunes stress production and dissipation and regulates large-scale network flows remains poorly understood. Here, we generate contracting actomyosin networks with rapid turnover in vitro, by encapsulating cytoplasmic Xenopus egg extracts into cell-sized 'water-in-oil' droplets. Within minutes, the networks reach a dynamic steady-state with continuous inward flow. The networks exhibit homogeneous, density-independent contraction for a wide range of physiological conditions, implying that the myosin-generated stress driving contraction and the effective network viscosity have similar density dep

SUBMITTER: Malik-Garbi M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6871652 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature