ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2013
Cell-sized liposomes reveal how actomyosin cortical tension drives shape change.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 56 papers.
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Who cites it
56 citing papers in PubMed, 124 citations in OpenAlex.
- Reconstitution of actomyosin networks in cell-sized liposomes dissects distinct mechanisms of membrane blebbing and symmetry breaking.Science advances · 2026Article
- Bottom-Up Coacervate-Based Artificial Cells: Integrating Cellular Hallmarks into Complex Life-Like Systems.Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English) · 2026Review
- Lipid composition effects on the number and size of liposomes formed by the inverted emulsion method.Biophysical journal · 2026Article
- Force Transmission by Minimal Focal Adhesion Complexes Induces Synthetic Cell Deformation.ACS synthetic biology · 2026Article
- Reconstituted systems for studying the architecture and dynamics of actin networks.The Biochemical journal · 2025Review
- Reconstitution of actomyosin networks in cell-sized liposomes reveals distinct mechanical roles of cytoskeletal organization in membrane shape remodeling.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Mechanical power is maximized during contractile ring-like formation in a biomimetic dividing cell model.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Composite branched and linear F-actin maximize myosin-induced membrane shape changes in a biomimetic cell model.Communications biology · 2024Article
- How cytoskeletal crosstalk makes cells move: Bridging cell-free and cell studies.Biophysics reviews · 2024Review
- Polysaccharide functionalization reduces lipid vesicle stiffness.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2024Article
- Visualizing Actin Packing and the Effects of Actin Attachment on Lipid Membrane Viscosity Using Molecular Rotors.JACS Au · 2024Article
- F-actin architecture determines the conversion of chemical energy into mechanical work.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Friction patterns guide actin network contraction.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2023Article
- Engineering Tissue-Scale Properties with Synthetic Cells: Forging One from Many.ACS synthetic biology · 2023Review
- Branched actin cortices reconstituted in vesicles sense membrane curvature.Biophysical journal · 2023Article
- Membrane tension induces F-actin reorganization and flow in a biomimetic model cortex.Communications biology · 2023Article
- Bioinspired Membrane Interfaces: Controlling Actomyosin Architecture and Contractility.ACS applied materials & interfaces · 2023Article
- Unveiling the physics underlying symmetry breaking of the actin cytoskeleton: An artificial cell-based approach.Biophysics and physicobiology · 2023Article
- Scratching beyond the surface - minimal actin assemblies as tools to elucidate mechanical reinforcement and shape change.Emerging topics in life sciences · 2022Article
- Studying actin-induced cell shape changes using Giant Unilamellar Vesicles and reconstituted actin networks.Biochemical Society transactions · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issuedTsai, Feng C [corrected to Tsai, Feng-Ching]
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Animal cells actively generate contractile stress in the actin cortex, a thin actin network beneath the cell membrane, to facilitate shape changes during processes like cytokinesis and motility. On the microscopic scale, this stress is generated by myosin molecular motors, which bind to actin cytoskeletal filaments and use chemical energy to exert pulling forces. To decipher the physical basis for the regulation of cell shape changes, here, we use a cell-like system with a cortex anchored to the outside or inside of a liposome membrane. This system enables us to dissect the interplay between motor pulling forces, cortex-membrane anchoring, and network connectivity. We show that cortices on the outside of liposomes either spontaneously rupture and relax built-up mechanical stress by peeling away around the liposome or actively compress and crush the liposome. The decision between peeling and crushing depends on the cortical tension determined by the amount of motors and also on the connectivity of the cortex and its attachment to the membrane. Membrane anchoring strongly affects the morphology of cortex contraction inside liposomes: cortices contract inward when weakly attached, whereas they contract toward the membrane when strongly attached. We propose a physical model based on a balance of active tension and mechanical resistance to rupture. Our findings show how membrane attachment and network connectivity are able to regulate actin cortex remodeling and membrane-shape changes for cell polarization.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.