Magnetotactic bacteria are ubiquitous motile single-cell organisms that biomineralize magnetic nanoparticles, allowing them to align with the Earth’s magnetic field and navigate their aquatic habitats. We are interested in the swimming mechanism of one particular type of magnetotactic bacteria, Magnetospirillum magneticum, which has a helical body and use two helical flagella to move up and...
We examine the kinetic process of an anionic A-block from an ABA triblock copolymer hopping between the solvophillic, cationic A-domains of an ABA triblock copolymer membrane. One motivation is to use this toy model to provide insight into the nature of a rapid, charge-mediated reconstitution mechanism observed for anionic membrane proteins reconstituted into cationic ABA triblock copolymer...
Solid-state nanopore sensors continue to hold great potential in addressing the increasing worldwide need for genome sequencing. However, formation and translocation of folded conformations known as haripins poses readability and accuracy challenges. In this work, we investigate the impact of applying a pressure-driven fluid flow and an opposing electrostatic force as an approach to increase...
Introduction: Endothelial cells (ECs) form the innermost lining of blood vessels and can sense and respond, via mechanotransduction, to local changes in wall shear stress (WSS) imposed by blood flow. Blood flow through a vessel can become disturbed when passing through bifurcations or plaque-burdened regions, which disrupts the direction and magnitude of WSS experienced by cells. ECs in these...
The microcirculation serves to deliver oxygen (O2) to tissue as red blood cells (RBCs) pass through the body’s smallest blood vessels, capillaries. Imaging techniques quantify O2 present in capillaries but lack effective modalities quantifying O2 entering tissue from capillaries. Thus, mathematical simulation has been used to investigate how O2 is distributed locally over a variation of...
When force is applied to tissue in a healthcare setting, tissue perfusion is reduced in response to the applied force; it is perfusion that is important in assessing tissue health and potential injury from the force 1,2. Traditional means of measuring force involve quantifying the mechanical strain or electrical responses of a sensor; these techniques do not necessarily correspond to the...
