This is an overview of theoretical approaches to semiflexible polymers and their networks.
Such semiflexible polymers have large bending rigidities that can compete with the entropic …

Despite their overwhelming complexity, living cells display a high degree of internal
mechanical and functional organization which can largely be attributed to the intracellular …

Cell physiological processes require the regulation and coordination of both mechanical
and dynamical properties of the actin cytoskeleton. Here we review recent advances in …

Background Cellular heterogeneity in tumor cells is a well-established phenomenon.
Genetic and phenotypic cell-to-cell variability have been observed in numerous studies both …

Cytoskeletal filaments provide cells with mechanical stability and organization. The main key
players are actin filaments and microtubules governing a cell's response to mechanical …

The actomyosin contractile ring assembles through the condensation of a broad band of
nodes that forms at the cell equator in fission yeast cytokinesis. The condensation process …

In living cells, lipid membranes and biopolymers determine each other's conformation in a
delicate force balance. Cellular polymers such as actin filaments are strongly confined by …

Actin networks are adaptive materials enabling dynamic and static functions of living cells. A
central element for tuning their underlying structural and mechanical properties is the ability …

The cytoskeleton is a major determinant of cell mechanics, and alterations in the central
mechanical aspects of cells are observed during many pathological situations. Therefore, it …

Rapid changes in cellular morphology require a cell body that is highly flexible yet retains
sufficient strength to maintain structural integrity. We present a mechanism that meets both of …