Many interesting problems in cellular biophysics involve the dynamics of filamentary elastic objects with bend and twist degrees of freedom, moving in a viscous environment. Motivated by the mysterious macrofiber formation in B. subtilis and the rotational dynamics of bacterial flagella, we have sought to establish a general theoretical structure to deal with elastic filament dynamics, analyze these equations for model systems, and to determine the important physical parameters that set the dynamical scales for these systems. We first studied the novel problem of a rotationally forced elastic filament in a viscous fluid [1] to examine the competition between twist injection, twist diffusion, and writhing motions. Two dynamical regimes separated by a Hopf bifurcation were discovered: (i) diffusion-dominated axial rotation, or twirling, and (ii) steady-state crankshafting motion, or whirling. Next, we extended elasticity theory of filaments to encompass systems, such as bacterial flagella, that display competition between two helical structures of opposite chirality [2]. A general, fully intrinsic formulation of the dynamics of bend and twist degrees of freedom was developed using the natural frame of space curves, spanning from the inviscid limit to the viscously-overdamped regime applicable to cellular biology. To be able to measure the elastic properties of cell-sized objects, such as bacterial fibers [3], we utilized an optical trapping system to study the relaxation of a single fiber of B. subtilis which was bent and then released. By analyzing the relaxation time, the bending modulus of the bacterial cell wall was measured to be 1.6 ± 0.6 x 10⁻¹² erg·cm. This number is important in understanding the scales of forces and torques that are present in macrofiber formation and motion, lending insight into the mechanism behind these phenomena.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:arizona.edu/oai:arizona.openrepository.com:10150/289171 |
| Date | January 2000 |
| Creators | Wolgemuth, Charles William |
| Contributors | Goldstein, Raymond E. |
| Publisher | The University of Arizona. |
| Source Sets | University of Arizona |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text, Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) |
| Rights | Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. |
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