title: Force-driven polymerization in cells: actin filaments and focal adhesions.
abstract: We describe a thermodynamic principle determining the phenomenon of protein self-assembly controlled by elastic stresses. This principle is based on the Gibbs-Dühem-like relationship between the chemical potential of the aggregated molecules and the stresses produced by forces acting on a protein aggregate. We present two biological systems whose operation can be driven by this principle: actin filament, a polymerizing processive capping by proteins of the formin family, and focal adhesions mediating a mechanical link between the cytoskeleton and extracellular substrates. We describe the major phenomenology of these systems and overview recent models, aimed at understanding the mechanisms of their functioning.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, 69978, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shemesh
authors.forename: Alexander D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Bershadsky
authors.forename: Michael M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Kozlov