Lecture

Biological Membranes: Deformations and Stiffness

Graph Chat

Chat with Graph Search

Ask any question about EPFL courses, lectures, exercises, research, news, etc. or try the example questions below.

DISCLAIMER: The Graph Chatbot is not programmed to provide explicit or categorical answers to your questions. Rather, it transforms your questions into API requests that are distributed across the various IT services officially administered by EPFL. Its purpose is solely to collect and recommend relevant references to content that you can explore to help you answer your questions.

In course

BIO-244: Physics of the cell

Living organisms evolve in a physical world: their cells respond to mechanics, electricity and light. In this course, we will describe the behavior and function of cells using physical principles. ...

Description

This lecture covers membrane deformations such as stretching, bending, and thickness changes, as well as the role of molecular motors and mechanosensitive ion channels. It explains the free energy of membrane deformation, measuring membrane stiffness, and the process of protocell division.

This video is available exclusively on Mediaspace for a restricted audience. Please log in to MediaSpace to access it if you have the necessary permissions.

Watch on Mediaspace

Instructor

Alexandre Louis André Persat

Expertise bacterial biophysics and bioengineeringmicrofluidicscellular biomechanics Teaching & PhD PhD Students Jann Lukas Ledergerber, Dea Mariette Müller, Marin Paul Geoffroy Marie Ollagnon, Han-Yi Huang, Alice Pellegrino, Shiro Otaki, Chia-Ni Tsai, Po-Long Hsiao Past EPFL PhD Students Lorenzo Anton-Louis Talà, Xavier Pierrat, Tamara Rossy, Alice Cont, Jeremy Wong, Sourabh Monnappa Kuppanda Jafri, Tania Distler Past EPFL PhD Students as codirector Gabriele Gambardella Courses Fluid mechanics (for SV)

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Biology

Cell biology: Membrane biology

Related concepts (32)

Cell membrane

The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of a cell from the outside environment (the extracellular space). The cell membrane consists of a lipid bilayer, made up of two layers of phospholipids with cholesterols (a lipid component) interspersed between them, maintaining appropriate membrane fluidity at various temperatures.

Membrane

A membrane is a selective barrier; it allows some things to pass through but stops others. Such things may be molecules, ions, or other small particles. Membranes can be generally classified into synthetic membranes and biological membranes. Biological membranes include cell membranes (outer coverings of cells or organelles that allow passage of certain constituents); nuclear membranes, which cover a cell nucleus; and tissue membranes, such as mucosae and serosae.

Lipid bilayer

The lipid bilayer (or phospholipid bilayer) is a thin polar membrane made of two layers of lipid molecules. These membranes are flat sheets that form a continuous barrier around all cells. The cell membranes of almost all organisms and many viruses are made of a lipid bilayer, as are the nuclear membrane surrounding the cell nucleus, and membranes of the membrane-bound organelles in the cell. The lipid bilayer is the barrier that keeps ions, proteins and other molecules where they are needed and prevents them from diffusing into areas where they should not be.

Synthetic membrane

An artificial membrane, or synthetic membrane, is a synthetically created membrane which is usually intended for separation purposes in laboratory or in industry. Synthetic membranes have been successfully used for small and large-scale industrial processes since the middle of twentieth century. A wide variety of synthetic membranes is known. They can be produced from organic materials such as polymers and liquids, as well as inorganic materials. The most of commercially utilized synthetic membranes in separation industry are made of polymeric structures.

Semipermeable membrane

Semipermeable membrane is a type of biological or synthetic, polymeric membrane that will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by osmosis. The rate of passage depends on the pressure, concentration, and temperature of the molecules or solutes on either side, as well as the permeability of the membrane to each solute. Depending on the membrane and the solute, permeability may depend on solute size, solubility, properties, or chemistry. How the membrane is constructed to be selective in its permeability will determine the rate and the permeability.

Related lectures (64)

Membrane Dynamics: Pores and Aggregates

Discusses self-assembly dynamics in oil and lipid systems, focusing on aggregate growth and pore formation in lipid bilayers.

Biological Membranes: Structure and Function

Delves into the complexity of biological membranes, emphasizing their dynamic nature, diverse functions, and significance for brain function and connectivity.

Membrane Structure: Gorter & Grendel Experiment

Delves into the Gorter & Grendel experiment on plasma membrane structure using red blood cells.

Genetic Control of Proteins and Lipids

Explores genetic control of proteins, lipid bilayer formation, membrane repair mechanisms, and lipid structural properties.

Protein Lipidation: Membrane Organization