The DOI matches its Crossref record; 92 of the 95 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Cell Membranes Resist Flow
Open accessPublished version of a preprint
Abstract
The fluid-mosaic model posits a liquid-like plasma membrane, which can flow in response to tension gradients. It is widely assumed that membrane flow transmits local changes in membrane tension across the cell in milliseconds, mediating long-range signaling. Here, we show that propagation of membrane tension occurs quickly in cell-attached blebs but is largely suppressed in intact cells. The failure of tension to propagate in cells is explained by a fluid dynamical model that incorporates the flow resistance from cytoskeleton-bound transmembrane proteins. Perturbations to tension propagate diffusively, with a diffusion coefficient D σ ∼0.024 μm 2/s in HeLa cells. In primary endothelial cells, local increases in membrane tension lead only to local activation of mechanosensitive ion channels and to local vesicle fusion. Thus, membrane tension is not a mediator of long-range intracellular signaling, but local variations in tension mediate distinct processes in sub-cellular domains.
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“Indeed, a substantial spatial gradient of membrane tension is thought to persist due to attachment of cytoskeleton to the membrane28.”
From Membrane compression by synaptic vesicle exocytosis triggers ultrafast endocytosis (2023) · cites this paper as [28]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Shi, Z., Graber, Z. T., Baumgart, T., Stone, H. A., & Cohen, A. E.
- Affiliations
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (US)
- University of Pennsylvania (US)
- Princeton University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cohen, Adam E.
- Venue
- Cell
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2018-12
- Volume
- 175
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 1769-1779.e13
- ISSN
- 0092-8674 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6541487
- OpenAlex
- W2795033146
- Cited by
- 355
- References
- 95
- Citations by year
- 2026: 32 · 2025: 48 · 2024: 43 · 2023: 41 · 2022: 56 · 2021: 38 · 2020: 49 · 2019: 41 · 2018: 6
- FWCI
- 18.56
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Cell (publishedVersion)
- bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute
- NIH (R01 GM 09755, U54CA193417)
- NSF (CBET-1509347, DMS 1614907)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Cellular Mechanics and Interactions
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Cellular transport and secretion
- Keywords
- membrane tension, cell membrane mechanics, mechanosensitive ion channels, vesicle fusion, endothelial cells, HeLa cells, intracellular signaling
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Cell Membrane, Cytoskeleton, Dogs, HeLa Cells, Humans, Ion Channels, Models, Biological, Signal Transduction, NIH 3T3 Cells, Mice, Rats, Madin Darby Canine Kidney Cells
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