Pulsatory patterns in active viscoelastic fluids with distinct relaxation time scales

Developing tissues need to pattern themselves in space and time. A prevalent mechanism to achieve this are pulsatile active stresses generated by the actin cytoskeleton. Active gel theory is a powerful tool to model the dynamics of cytoskeletal pattern formation. In theoretical models, the influence...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: E M de Kinkelder, E Fischer-Friedrich, S Aland
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2023-01-01
Series:New Journal of Physics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/acd5f7
Description
Summary:Developing tissues need to pattern themselves in space and time. A prevalent mechanism to achieve this are pulsatile active stresses generated by the actin cytoskeleton. Active gel theory is a powerful tool to model the dynamics of cytoskeletal pattern formation. In theoretical models, the influence of the viscoelastic nature of the actin cytoskeleton has so far only been investigated by the incorporation of one viscoelastic relaxation time scale. Here, using a minimal model of active gel theory, we show that distinct shear and areal relaxation times are sufficient to drive pulsatile dynamics in active surfaces with only a single molecular regulator.
ISSN:1367-2630