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IMAGE: The scientists formed a simple lipid bilayer by docking two monolayer-lined water bubbles and evaluated membrane tension based on the Young-Laplace principle to measure intra-bubble pressures lower than 100 pascals,. view more
Credit: Masayuki Iwamoto from University of Fukui
Ion channels play an indispensable role in cellular physiology, and understanding the physical features that affect ion channel functions is a matter of considerable interest to biologists. Given that mechanosensitivity is an intrinsic feature of cells, the complex set of mechanical stresses acting on a cell at any time represents an important consideration in the field of cellular physiology. In fact, stretching forces created by mechanical stress are sometimes necessary to activate ion channels. As Professor Masayuki Iwamoto and Professor Shigetoshi Oiki of the University of Fukui explain, Mechanical stresses change the level of cell membrane tension, and stretch-activated ion ch
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IMAGE: Cell membranes contain channels that selectively permit ions to move into or out of the cell. In a recently published paper, researchers from the University of Fukui and Kanazawa University. view more
Credit: University of Fukui
The cell membranes of all organisms contain ion channels that permit ions to pass into or out of the cell, and these channels play extremely important roles in fundamental physiological processes such as heartbeats and the rapid conduction of signals along neurons. An important property of these ion channels is their selective conductivity they selectively permit the passage of particular ions. For example, potassium channels more readily permit the passage of potassium ions than the passage of sodium ions, despite the fact that potassium ions are larger.