The Fluid Dynamics Of Cell Motility

A pedagogical review of the mathematical modelling in fluid dynamics necessary to understand the motility of most microorganisms on Earth.

A much-needed work that provides an authoritative overview of the fundamental biological facts, theoretical models, and current experimental developments in this fascinating area. Cell motility is fundamentally important to a number of biological and pathological processes. The main challenge in the field of cell motility is to develop a complete physical description on how and why cells move. For this purpose new ways of modeling the properties of biological cells have to be found – and this volume is a major stepping-stone along the way.

Recent advances in molecular and biophysical techniques, particularly fluorescence and live cell imaging, are revolutionizing the study of cell motility. New bioprobes not only reveal simple intracellular localization, but also contain details of post-translational modifications, conformational state and protein-protein interactions. Coupling these insights with complementary advances in genetic and biochemical methods is enabling scientists to understand the processes involved in cell motility - from molecular motors to cell movements in vivo in a range of organisms and cell types. This book features landmark essays that provide an up to date and fascinating account of current research and concepts in cell motility.These cover the roles of molecular motors that drive movement and their interactions with the cytoskeleton as well as membrane dynamics that allow cells to change shape and to move. Cell motility plays a key role in development - there are chapters on the genetics of cell migration, the regulation of contact repulsion in growth cones, and the progression from cell migration to cell-cell adhesion. Cell motility is directional - experts describe the molecules that regulate chemotaxis, allowing cells to migrate along pathways specified by chemical gradients. Finally, cell motility can be perturbed by mutation--metastasis occurs when cells lose their normal intercellular interactions and invade other tissue types. All these processes are regulated by signals from the environment, including other tissues in the body, and the various molecules that transmit and transduce these signals are discussed. This book is a 'must read' for cell biologists working in a variety of fields, from development to wound healing, at all levels - post-doctoral fellows, post-graduate students and lab technicians. It is also stimulating reading for molecular and developmental biologists, biophysicists and biochemists.

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Fluid mechanics is an important branch of physics concerned with the way in which fluids, such as liquids and gases, behave when in motion and at rest. A quintessential interdisciplinary field of science, it interacts with many other scientific disciplines, from chemistry and biology to mathematics and engineering. This Very Short Introduction presents the field of fluid mechanics by focusing on the underlying physical ideas and using everyday phenomena to demonstrate them, from dripping taps to swimming ducks. Eric Lauga shows how this set of fundamental physical concepts can be applied to a wide range of flow behaviours and highlights the role of fluid motion in both the natural and industrial worlds. This book also considers future applications of fluid mechanics in science. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

This book surveys the most recent advances in physics-inspired cell movement models. This synergetic, cross-disciplinary effort to increase the fidelity of computational algorithms will lead to a better understanding of the complex biomechanics of cell movement, and stimulate progress in research on related active matter systems, from suspensions of bacteria and synthetic swimmers to cell tissues and cytoskeleton.Cell motility and collective motion are among the most important themes in biology and statistical physics of out-of-equilibrium systems, and crucial for morphogenesis, wound healing, and immune response in eukaryotic organisms. It is also relevant for the development of effective treatment strategies for diseases such as cancer, and for the design of bioactive surfaces for cell sorting and manipulation. Substrate-based cell motility is, however, a very complex process as regulatory pathways and physical force generation mechanisms are intertwined. To understand the interplay between adhesion, force generation and motility, an abundance of computational models have been proposed in recent years, from finite element to immerse interface methods and phase field approaches.This book is primarily written for physicists, mathematical biologists and biomedical engineers working in this rapidly expanding field, and can serve as supplementary reading for advanced graduate courses in biophysics and mathematical biology. The e-book incorporates experimental and computer animations illustrating various aspects of cell movement./div

This book contains a collection of original research articles and review articles that describe novel mathematical modeling techniques and the application of those techniques to models of cell motility in a variety of contexts. The aim is to highlight some of the recent mathematical work geared at understanding the coordination of intracellular processes involved in the movement of cells. This collection will benefit researchers interested in cell motility as well graduate students taking a topics course in this area.