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Membranes

Shaping biological matter

Nature Materials volume 8, pages 173–174 (2009)Cite this article

Biological membranes form an extremely complex and dynamic network in cells, guided by specialized protein machinery. A new algorithm analyses membrane shape to extract forces applied by proteins controlling the membranes.

The space occupied by living organisms is determined by membranes. Each cell is delimited by a membrane, and additional membranes form the functional hierarchy of compartments packed within it. The intracellular compartments, for example vesicles and organelles, define the spatial organization of metabolic pathways, thus providing the topological framework for cellular life. Recent advances in structural techniques and super-resolution microscopy now allow imaging of intracellular membrane structures with unprecedented resolution. Paul Wiggins and co-workers1 are, perhaps, first to notice that the wealth of membrane structures obtained awaits detailed elastic modelling.

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Figure 1: Calculation of forces acting on a membrane boundary from the membrane shape.
Figure 2: Hypothetical algorithm of calculation of forces shaping an organelle.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vadim A. Frolov and Joshua Zimmerberg are part of the Program on Physical Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-1855, USA. zimmerbj@mail.nih.gov,

    Vadim A. Frolov & Joshua Zimmerberg

Authors
  1. Vadim A. Frolov
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  2. Joshua Zimmerberg
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Frolov, V., Zimmerberg, J. Shaping biological matter. Nature Mater 8, 173–174 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2390

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