Electro-Acoustic Behavior of the Mitotic Spindle: A Semi-Classical Coarse-Grained Model

0428315 - ÚFE 2015 RIV US eng J - Journal Article
Havelka, Daniel - Kučera, Ondřej - Deriu, M.A. - Cifra, Michal
Electro-Acoustic Behavior of the Mitotic Spindle: A Semi-Classical Coarse-Grained Model.
PLoS ONE. Roč. 9, č. 1 (2014), e86501. ISSN 1932-6203. E-ISSN 1932-6203
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GAP102/11/0649
Institutional support: RVO:67985882
Keywords : electric fields * tubulin * chromosomes
Subject RIV: JA - Electronics ; Optoelectronics, Electrical Engineering
Impact factor: 3.234, year: 2014

The regulation of chromosome separation during mitosis is not fully understood yet. Microtubules forming mitotic spindles are targets of treatment strategies which are aimed at (i) the triggering of the apoptosis or (ii) the interruption of uncontrolled cell division. Despite these facts, only few physical models relating to the dynamics of mitotic spindles exist up to now. In this paper, we present the first electromechanical model which enables calculation of the electromagnetic field coupled to acoustic vibrations of the mitotic spindle. This electromagnetic field originates from the electrical polarity of microtubules which form the mitotic spindle. The model is based on the approximation of resonantly vibrating microtubules by a network of oscillating electric dipoles. Our computational results predict the existence of a rapidly changing electric field which is generated by either driven or endogenous vibrations of the mitotic spindle. For certain values of parameters, the intensity of the electric field and its gradient reach values which may exert a not-inconsiderable force on chromosomes which are aligned in the spindle midzone. Our model may describe possible mechanisms of the effects of ultra-short electrical and mechanical pulses on dividing cells-a strategy used in novel methods for cancer treatment
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0233658