ArticlePloS one2013
Membrane elastic properties and cell function.
Article in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 61 papers.
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Who cites it
61 citing papers in PubMed.
- Chromatin decompaction within the nucleus increases plasma membrane tension promoting NETosis execution, independently of transcription.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Tension TRAAKer: a chemigenetic fluorescent membrane tension reporter.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- A biophysical model of phagocytic cup dynamics: The effect of membrane tension.PLoS computational biology · 2026Article
- Tunneling Nanotubes in Astrocyte-Neuron Crosstalk: From Intercellular Communication and Pathological Spread to Mechanobiological and Bio-Inspired Approaches.Brain sciences · 2026Review
- Spontaneous calcium transients in hair cell stereocilia.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- A multiscale theory for mesenchymal cell migration in straight or curved channel confinement.Biophysical journal · 2025Article
- Two-component macrophage model for active phagocytosis with pseudopod formation.Biophysical journal · 2024Article
- Dysregulation of cellular membrane homeostasis as a crucial modulator of cancer risk.The FEBS journal · 2024Review
- Shining Light in Mechanobiology: Optical Tweezers, Scissors, and Beyond.ACS photonics · 2024Review
- Biophysical Modeling of Actin-Mediated Structural Plasticity Reveals Mechanical Adaptation in Dendritic Spines.eNeuro · 2024Article
- Article
- An evaluation of aging measures: from biomarkers to clocks.Biogerontology · 2023Review
- Comparison of thermal and athermal dynamics of the cell membrane slope fluctuations in the presence and absence of Latrunculin-B.Physical biology · 2023Article
- Insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor controls the function of CNS-resident macrophages and their contribution to neuroinflammation.Acta neuropathologica communications · 2023Article
- A multiscale whole-cell theory for mechanosensitive migration on viscoelastic substrates.Biophysical journal · 2023Article
- Controlling the shape and topology of two-component colloidal membranes.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2022Article
- Absorption of the [bmim][Cl] Ionic Liquid in DMPC Lipid Bilayers across Their Gel, Ripple, and Fluid Phases.The journal of physical chemistry. B · 2022Article
- Morphological Characteristics, Hemoglobin Content, and Membrane Mechanical Properties of Red Blood Cell Delivery Systems.ACS applied materials & interfaces · 2022Article
- Filopodia rotate and coil by actively generating twist in their actin shaft.Nature communications · 2022Article
- Alteration of lipid bilayer mechanics by volatile anesthetics: Insights from μs-long molecular dynamics simulations.iScience · 2022Article
1 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Recent studies indicate that the cell membrane, interacting with its attached cytoskeleton, is an important regulator of cell function, exerting and responding to forces. We investigate this relationship by looking for connections between cell membrane elastic properties, especially surface tension and bending modulus, and cell function. Those properties are measured by pulling tethers from the cell membrane with optical tweezers. Their values are determined for all major cell types of the central nervous system, as well as for macrophage. Astrocytes and glioblastoma cells, which are considerably more dynamic than neurons, have substantially larger surface tensions. Resting microglia, which continually scan their environment through motility and protrusions, have the highest elastic constants, with values similar to those for resting macrophage. For both microglia and macrophage, we find a sharp softening of bending modulus between their resting and activated forms, which is very advantageous for their acquisition of phagocytic functions upon activation. We also determine the elastic constants of pure cell membrane, with no attached cytoskeleton. For all cell types, the presence of F-actin within tethers, contrary to conventional wisdom, is confirmed. Our findings suggest the existence of a close connection between membrane elastic constants and cell function.
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