Maximal Force Characteristics of the Ca[superscript 2+]-Powered Actuator of Vorticella convallaria
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Ryu-2012-Maximal Force Charac.pdf
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Author(s)
Ryu, Sangjin
Lang, Matthew J.
Matsudaira, Paul T.
Date Issued
September 2012
Journal
Biophysical Journal
Publisher
Elsevier
Citation
Ryu, Sangjin, Matthew J. Lang, and Paul Matsudaira. “Maximal Force Characteristics of the Ca2+-Powered Actuator of Vorticella Convallaria.” Biophysical Journal 103, no. 5 (September 2012): 860–867. © 2012 Biophysical Society
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The millisecond stalk contraction of the sessile ciliate Vorticella convallaria is powered by energy from Ca[superscript 2+] binding to generate contractile forces of ∼10 nN. Its contractile organelle, the spasmoneme, generates higher contractile force under increased stall resistances. By applying viscous drag force to contracting V. convallaria in a microfluidic channel, we observed that the mechanical force and work of the spasmoneme depended on the stalk length, i.e., the maximum tension (150–350 nN) and work linearly depended on the stalk length (~2.5 nN and ~30 fJ per 1 μm of the stalk). This stalk-length dependency suggests that motor units of the spasmoneme may be organized in such a way that the mechanical force and work of each unit cumulate in series along the spasmoneme.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biological Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research
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Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2012.07.038
