Entropic attraction of adhesion bonds toward cell boundaries

TL;DR

This paper investigates how entropy-driven fluctuation-induced interactions cause adhesion bonds to be attracted to cell boundaries, with the probability distribution decaying algebraically and the attraction being self-screened at higher concentrations.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the entropic attraction of adhesion bonds to cell boundaries and how this effect varies with bond concentration.

Findings

Probability distribution decays algebraically with distance from boundaries.

Attraction to boundaries is strongly self-screened at higher bond concentrations.

Entropy loss due to membrane fluctuations drives adhesion bonds toward cell edges.

Abstract

Adhesion bonds between membranes and surfaces are attracted to each other via effective interactions whose origin the entropy loss due to the reduction in the amplitude of the membrane thermal fluctuations in the vicinity of the adhesion bonds. These fluctuation-induced interactions are also expected to drive the adhesion bonds toward the rim of the cell, as well as toward the surfaces of membrane inclusions. In this paper, we analyze the attraction of adhesion bonds to the cell inner and outer boundaries. Our analysis shows that the probability distribution function of a single (diffusing) adhesion bond decay algebraically with the distance from the boundaries. Upon increasing the concentration of the adhesion bonds, the attraction to the boundaries becomes strongly self-screened.