Premium
Surface topology assisted alignment of Min protein waves
Author(s) -
Zieske Katja,
Schweizer Jakob,
Schwille Petra
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/j.febslet.2014.06.026
Subject(s) - topology (electrical circuits) , escherichia coli , diffusion , surface (topology) , orientation (vector space) , pattern formation , membrane , biophysics , chemistry , biological system , materials science , crystallography , geometry , physics , biology , biochemistry , gene , mathematics , genetics , combinatorics , thermodynamics
Self‐organization of proteins into large‐scale structures is of pivotal importance for the organization of cells. The Min protein system of the bacterium Escherichia coli is a prime example of how pattern formation occurs via reaction–diffusion. We have previously demonstrated how Min protein patterns are influenced by compartment geometry. Here we probe the influence of membrane surface topology, as an additional regulatory element. Using microstructured membrane‐clad soft polymer substrates, Min protein patterns can be aligned. We demonstrate that Min pattern alignment starts early during pattern formation and show that macroscopic millimeter‐sized areas of protein patterns of well‐defined orientation can be generated.