Abstract
Cells respond to applied external forces through different mechanosensitive processes, with many of them based on the interaction between membrane-embedded proteins and their lipid environments. This interaction can depend on membrane curvature at the location of such proteins. Here we elucidate the general characteristics of a macroscopically defined protein–lipid bilayer interaction based on a mismatch between the shape of the protein surface and the surrounding membrane curvature. It is shown how the parameters of this interaction are related to the experimentally determined distribution of membrane-embedded proteins between highly curved tubular and flat membrane regions of a giant phospholipid vesicle. The results obtained for such distribution of potassium channel KvAP are presented as an example. Possible participation of the curvature-dependent protein–lipid bilayer interaction in mechanosensitive processes is indicated.
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Acknowledgments
Drs. Bojan Božič and Roger Pain critically read the manuscript. Drs. Bojan Božič and Jure Derganc helped in preparing Figs. 2 and 3, respectively, and Mr. Marjan Verč helped in preparing Figs. 1, 4, and 5. This work was supported by the Slovenian Research Agency through the research program P1-0055.
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Special issue title “Biophysics of Mechanotransduction”.
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Svetina, S. Curvature-dependent protein–lipid bilayer interaction and cell mechanosensitivity. Eur Biophys J 44, 513–519 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00249-015-1046-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00249-015-1046-5