Collaborative Research: Electro-Mechanical Interactions in Biological Membranes

类脂膜形成包围生物细胞内部的包膜。这些膜表现出独特的机械和电学特性，这些特性相互作用，从而促进了广泛的生物过程。构成这些膜的脂质分子的结构赋予了不同寻常的机械行为，类似于液晶，液晶是介于传统固体和液体之间的一种物质相。质膜的另一个基本特征是内层脂分子带负电荷。这些带电的脂类在物理力的作用下扩散到膜表面。反过来，带电的脂类在调节膜嵌入的蛋白质结构的功能方面起着重要作用。这个项目的目标是建立和使用数学和计算模型来研究脂质-蛋白质系统的机电相互作用。从该项目中获得的见解将有助于更好地理解发生在细胞水平上的物理过程。这反过来有望加强对脂质相关疾病的潜在机制和药物治疗效果的理解。因此，该项目将促进基础科学的进步，并推进关键医疗保健领域的国家优先事项。该项目结合了物理学、结构工程和细胞生物学各个分支的专业知识。它将为不同的学生群体提供高级培训，从而通过帮助建立新一代跨学科科学家和工程师来提高美国的全球竞争力。该项目将提供描述生物膜中带电脂质和蛋白质的基本相互作用的数学框架。它最终将成为一种预测工具，用于模拟负责一系列细胞功能的微观机电相互作用。它的新特点包括使用连续介质理论和分子动力学模拟脂-蛋白质界面的膜变形之间的耦合相互作用，荷电的脂类和蛋白质的扩散，以及电场对组合体系行为的作用的量化。衍生的框架还将帮助力学和材料科学界的研究人员对复杂的2D界面进行建模。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Lipid membranes form the envelope surrounding the interior of biological cells. These membranes exhibit unique mechanical and electrical properties that interact in such a way as to facilitate a wide range of biological processes. The structure of the lipid molecules that constitute these membranes imparts unusual mechanical behavior resembling that of liquid crystals, a phase of matter intermediate between conventional solids and liquids. Another basic feature of plasma membranes is a negatively charged inner layer of lipid molecules. These charged lipids diffuse on the membrane surface in response to physical forces. In turn,charged lipids play a significant role in regulating the functionality of membrane-embedded protein structures. The objective of this project is to formulate and employ mathematical and computational models to investigate electro-mechanical interactions of lipid-protein systems. Insights gained from the project willlead to improved understanding of physical processes occurring at the cellular level. This in turn is expected to enhance understanding of the mechanisms underlying lipid-associated diseases and the efficacy of drug therapies. Thus, the project will promote the progress of fundamental science and advance national priorities in the critical area of healthcare. The project combines expertise in various branches of physics, structural engineering and cellular biology. It will provide advanced training to a diverse group of students and thereby enhance U.S. global competitiveness by contributing to the establishment of a new generation of interdisciplinary scientists and engineers.This project will provide the mathematical framework to describe the fundamental interactions of charged lipids and proteins in biological membranes. It will culminate in a predictive tool for the simulation of the microscopic electromechanical interactions responsible for a host of cellular functions. Its novel features include the use of continuum theory and molecular dynamics modeling of the coupled interplay between membrane deformation at the lipid-protein interfaces, diffusion of charged lipids and proteins, and the quantification of the role of electric fields on the behavior of the combined system. The derived framework would also assist researchers in the mechanics and material science communities to model complex 2D interfaces.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.