New Proposed Mechanism of Actin-Polymerization-Driven Motility

Abstract

We present the first numerical simulation of actin-driven propulsion by elastic filaments. Specifically, we use a Brownian dynamics formulation of the dendritic nucleation model of actin-driven propulsion. We show that the model leads to a self-assembled network that exerts forces on a disk and pushes it with an average speed. This simulation approach is the first to observe a speed that varies non-monotonically with the concentration of branching proteins (Arp2/3), capping protein and depolymerization rate (ADF), in accord with experimental observations. Our results suggest a new interpretation of the origin of motility that can be tested readily by experiment.

31 pages, 5 figures

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Cited by in corpus (4)

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• Compressive force generation by a bundle of living biofilaments
• A theory for coexistence and selection of branched actin networks in a shared and finite pool of monomers
• Volume exclusion and elasticity driven directional transport: an alternative model for bacterium motility