Large-scale Actin Wave Patterns Perturbed by Electric and Mechanical Cues in Giant Dictyostelium discoideum

ORAL

Abstract

Dictyostelium discoideum(Dd) provides a good system to study actin dynamics guided by extracellular cues such as electric field, mechanical cues and chemical gradients. However, waves in normal Dd extinguish at the boundary and only show confined sections of wave patterns. Here we apply electrofusion to produce giant Dd, a polykaryotic cell which is up to ten times the size of normal Dd. In those cells F-actin waves travel freely across plasma membrane and show large-scale wave patterns independent of boundary effects. We use this system to explore how nanoridges and DC electric fields perturb actin waves on a scale as large as 50 microns.

*This work is funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research grant FA9550-16-1-0052

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Presenters

  • QIXIN YANG

    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland,College Park

Authors

  • QIXIN YANG

    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland,College Park

  • Matt J. Hourwitz

    • University of Maryland, College Park
    • Department of Chemistry, University of Maryland,College Park
    • Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland-College Park

  • Leonard Campanello

    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland,College Park
    • University of Maryland, College Park

  • Bedri Sharif

    • Department of Cell Biology, Johns Hopkins, School of Medcine

  • Peter Devreotes

    • Department of Cell Biology, Johns Hopkins, School of Medcine

  • John T Fourkas

    • University of Maryland, College Park
    • Department of Chemistry, University of Maryland,College Park
    • Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland-College Park

  • Wolfgang Losert

    • University of Maryland, College Park
    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland
    • Institute of Physical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park
    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland,College Park
    • Physics, University of Maryland, College Park
    • Department of Physics, University of Maryland-College Park
    • IREAP, IPST, University of Maryland, College Park
    • Departments of Physics, IPST and IREAP, University of Maryland, College Park