Biophysics articles within Nature Physics

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  • Article |

    Tissue growth and regrowth rely on the collective migration of sheets of cells. Gradients in tension established through intercellular forces guide this migration, but the mechanism driving the gradients has remained unclear. Innovative experiments now reveal their origin—in a mechanical wave set up by sequential cell reinforcement and fluidization.

    • Xavier Serra-Picamal
    • , Vito Conte
    •  & Xavier Trepat

  • Article |

    There is growing evidence that quantum coherence enhances energy transfer through individual photosynthetic light-harvesting protein complexes. This idea is now extended to complicated networks of such proteins and chemical reaction centres. A mathematical analysis reveals that coherence lengths up to 5 nm are possible.

    • A. K. Ringsmuth
    • , G. J. Milburn
    •  & T. M. Stace

  • News & Views |

    Biological systems can adapt to changes in their environment over a wide range of conditions, but responding quickly and accurately is energetically costly. A study pins down the relationship between energy, speed and accuracy.

    • Pieter Rein ten Wolde

  • News & Views |

    Migrating cells are capable of actively opposing external forces. A study of the polymers that mediate cell motility indicates that they effect this response by branching where bent under force.

    • Anders E. Carlsson

  • Article |

    It is well known that organisms profit from adapting to their environment. A study of stochastic adaptation dynamics shows that this comes at the expense of adaptive speed and accuracy—providing a framework for understanding adaptation in noisy biological systems.

    • Ganhui Lan
    • , Pablo Sartori
    •  & Yuhai Tu

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