Mechanics and dynamics of translocating MreB filaments on curved membranes

Felix Wong, Ethan C Garner, Ariel Amir

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

MreB is an actin homolog that is essential for coordinating the cell wall synthesis required for the rod shape of many bacteria. Previously we have shown that filaments of MreB bind to the curved membranes of bacteria and translocate in directions determined by principal membrane curvatures to create and reinforce the rod shape (Hussain et al., 2018). Here, in order to understand how MreB filament dynamics affects their cellular distribution, we model how MreB filaments bind and translocate on membranes with different geometries. We find that it is both energetically favorable and robust for filaments to bind and orient along directions of largest membrane curvature. Furthermore, significant localization to different membrane regions results from processive MreB motion in various geometries. These results demonstrate that the in vivo localization of MreB observed in many different experiments, including those examining negative Gaussian curvature, can arise from translocation dynamics alone.
Original languageEnglish
Article numbere40472
Number of pages14
JournaleLife
Volume8
DOIs
StatePublished - 18 Feb 2019
Externally publishedYes

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