Regensburg 2019 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 14: Cell mechanics I

BP 14.6: Talk

Wednesday, April 3, 2019, 11:15–11:30, H10

Blood platelet formation - a biological Rayleigh-Plateau instability — •Christian Bächer and Stephan Gekle — Biofluid Simulation and Modeling, Bayreuth, Germany

Active stresses in the cell cortex, which can trigger changes in cell shape, are highly important for cell mechanics. Based on active gel theory and thin shell theory we incorporate active stresses in 3D simulations of elastic cell membranes in flows [1]. We combine the active force calculation with immersed boundary/lattice Boltzmann method to couple an active membrane to an external fluid.

Blood platelets are formed out of fragmenting protrusions of stem cells called megakaryocytes under presence of active stresses. Our simulations provide an explanation for this fragmentation: active stresses trigger a pearling instability of an elastic, biological cell membrane. This instability can be understood as a biological Rayleigh-Plateau instability with the active stress playing the same role as the surface tension of a liquid jet.

[1] C. Bächer, S.Gekle, J. Comput. Phys. (submitted), 2018