TY - JOUR AU - Vahid Belarghou, Afshin AU - Šarić, Anđela AU - Idema, Timon ID - 10126 IS - 3 JF - Biophysical Journal KW - biophysics SN - 0006-3495 TI - Curvature mediated interactions in highly curved membranes VL - 112 ER - TY - JOUR AB - We study periodic homogenization by Γ-convergence of integral functionals with integrands W(x,ξ) having no polynomial growth and which are both not necessarily continuous with respect to the space variable and not necessarily convex with respect to the matrix variable. This allows to deal with homogenization of composite hyperelastic materials consisting of two or more periodic components whose the energy densities tend to infinity as the volume of matter tends to zero, i.e., W(x,ξ)=∑j∈J1Vj(x)Hj(ξ) where {Vj}j∈J is a finite family of open disjoint subsets of RN, with |∂Vj|=0 for all j∈J and ∣∣RN∖⋃j∈JVj|=0, and, for each j∈J, Hj(ξ)→∞ as detξ→0. In fact, our results apply to integrands of type W(x,ξ)=a(x)H(ξ) when H(ξ)→∞ as detξ→0 and a∈L∞(RN;[0,∞[) is 1-periodic and is either continuous almost everywhere or not continuous. When a is not continuous, we obtain a density homogenization formula which is a priori different from the classical one by Braides–Müller. Although applications to hyperelasticity are limited due to the fact that our framework is not consistent with the constraint of noninterpenetration of the matter, our results can be of technical interest to analysis of homogenization of integral functionals. AU - Anza Hafsa, Omar AU - Clozeau, Nicolas AU - Mandallena, Jean-Philippe ID - 10175 IS - 2 JF - Annales mathématiques Blaise Pascal SN - 1259-1734 TI - Homogenization of nonconvex unbounded singular integrals VL - 24 ER - TY - JOUR AB - We investigate effects of quasiparticle poisoning in a Majorana island with strong tunnel coupling to normal-metal leads. In addition to the main Coulomb blockade diamonds, "shadow" diamonds appear, shifted by 1e in gate voltage, consistent with transport through an excited (poisoned) state of the island. Comparison to a simple model yields an estimate of parity lifetime for the strongly coupled island (∼1 μs) and sets a bound for a weakly coupled island (>10 μs). Fluctuations in the gate-voltage spacing of Coulomb peaks at high field, reflecting Majorana hybridization, are enhanced by the reduced lever arm at strong coupling. When converted from gate voltage to energy units, fluctuations are consistent with previous measurements. AU - Albrecht, S M AU - Hansen, Esben AU - Higginbotham, Andrew P AU - Kuemmeth, Ferdinand AU - Jespersen, Thomas AU - Nygård, Jesper AU - Krogstrup, Peter AU - Danon, Jeroen AU - Flensberg, Karsten AU - Marcus, Charles ID - 103 IS - 13 JF - APS Physics, Physical Review Letters TI - Transport signatures of quasiparticle poisoning in a majorana island VL - 118 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Eukaryotic cells are densely packed with macromolecular complexes and intertwining organelles, continually transported and reshaped. Intriguingly, organelles avoid clashing and entangling with each other in such limited space. Mitochondria form extensive networks constantly remodeled by fission and fusion. Here, we show that mitochondrial fission is triggered by mechanical forces. Mechano-stimulation of mitochondria – via encounter with motile intracellular pathogens, via external pressure applied by an atomic force microscope, or via cell migration across uneven microsurfaces – results in the recruitment of the mitochondrial fission machinery, and subsequent division. We propose that MFF, owing to affinity for narrow mitochondria, acts as a membrane-bound force sensor to recruit the fission machinery to mechanically strained sites. Thus, mitochondria adapt to the environment by sensing and responding to biomechanical cues. Our findings that mechanical triggers can be coupled to biochemical responses in membrane dynamics may explain how organelles orderly cohabit in the crowded cytoplasm. AU - Helle, Sebastian Carsten Johannes AU - Feng, Qian AU - Aebersold, Mathias J AU - Hirt, Luca AU - Grüter, Raphael R AU - Vahid, Afshin AU - Sirianni, Andrea AU - Mostowy, Serge AU - Snedeker, Jess G AU - Šarić, Anđela AU - Idema, Timon AU - Zambelli, Tomaso AU - Kornmann, Benoît ID - 10370 JF - eLife KW - general immunology and microbiology KW - general biochemistry KW - genetics and molecular biology KW - general medicine KW - general neuroscience SN - 2050-084X TI - Mechanical force induces mitochondrial fission VL - 6 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Biological membranes have a central role in mediating the organization of membrane-curving proteins, a dynamic process that has proven to be challenging to probe experimentally. Using atomic force microscopy, we capture the hierarchically organized assemblies of Bin/amphiphysin/Rvs (BAR) proteins on supported lipid membranes. Their structure reveals distinct long linear aggregates of proteins, regularly spaced by up to 300 nm. Employing accurate free-energy calculations from large-scale coarse-grained computer simulations, we found that the membrane mediates the interaction among protein filaments as a combination of short- and long-ranged interactions. The long-ranged component acts at strikingly long distances, giving rise to a variety of micron-sized ordered patterns. This mechanism may contribute to the long-ranged spatiotemporal control of membrane remodeling by proteins in the cell. AU - Simunovic, Mijo AU - Šarić, Anđela AU - Henderson, J. Michael AU - Lee, Ka Yee C. AU - Voth, Gregory A. ID - 10369 IS - 12 JF - ACS Central Science KW - general chemical engineering KW - general chemistry SN - 2374-7943 TI - Long-range organization of membrane-curving proteins VL - 3 ER -