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Zhu G, Gao L, Sun Y, Wei W, Yan LT. Non-equilibrium structural and dynamic behaviors of active polymers in complex and crowded environments. REPORTS ON PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. PHYSICAL SOCIETY (GREAT BRITAIN) 2024; 87:054601. [PMID: 38608453 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6633/ad3e11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/14/2024]
Abstract
Active matter systems, which convert internal chemical energy or energy from the environment into directed motion, are ubiquitous in nature and exhibit a range of emerging non-equilibrium behaviors. However, most of the current works on active matter have been devoted to particles, and the study of active polymers has only recently come into the spotlight due to their prevalence within living organisms. The intricate interplay between activity and conformational degrees of freedom gives rise to novel structural and dynamical behaviors of active polymers. Research in active polymers remarkably broadens diverse concepts of polymer physics, such as molecular architecture, dynamics, scaling and so on, which is of significant importance for the development of new polymer materials with unique performance. Furthermore, active polymers are often found in strongly interacting and crowded systems and in complex environments, so that the understanding of this behavior is essential for future developments of novel polymer-based biomaterials. This review thereby focuses on the study of active polymers in complex and crowded environments, and aims to provide insights into the fundamental physics underlying the adaptive and collective behaviors far from equilibrium, as well as the open challenges that the field is currently facing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guolong Zhu
- School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, People's Republic of China
| | - Lijuan Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, People's Republic of China
| | - Yihang Sun
- School of Physics and Electronics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082, People's Republic of China
| | - Wenjie Wei
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, People's Republic of China
| | - Li-Tang Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, People's Republic of China
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Deblais A, Prathyusha KR, Sinaasappel R, Tuazon H, Tiwari I, Patil VP, Bhamla MS. Worm blobs as entangled living polymers: from topological active matter to flexible soft robot collectives. SOFT MATTER 2023; 19:7057-7069. [PMID: 37706563 PMCID: PMC10523214 DOI: 10.1039/d3sm00542a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/15/2023]
Abstract
Recently, the study of long, slender living worms has gained attention due to their unique ability to form highly entangled physical structures, exhibiting emergent behaviors. These organisms can assemble into an active three-dimensional soft entity referred to as the "blob", which exhibits both solid-like and liquid-like properties. This blob can respond to external stimuli such as light, to move or change shape. In this perspective article, we acknowledge the extensive and rich history of polymer physics, while illustrating how these living worms provide a fascinating experimental platform for investigating the physics of active, polymer-like entities. The combination of activity, long aspect ratio, and entanglement in these worms gives rise to a diverse range of emergent behaviors. By understanding the intricate dynamics of the worm blob, we could potentially stimulate further research into the behavior of entangled active polymers, and guide the advancement of synthetic topological active matter and bioinspired tangling soft robot collectives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antoine Deblais
- van der Waals-Zeeman Institute, Institute of Physics, University of Amsterdam, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - K R Prathyusha
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
| | - Rosa Sinaasappel
- van der Waals-Zeeman Institute, Institute of Physics, University of Amsterdam, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Harry Tuazon
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
| | - Ishant Tiwari
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
| | - Vishal P Patil
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - M Saad Bhamla
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA.
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Patil VP, Tuazon H, Kaufman E, Chakrabortty T, Qin D, Dunkel J, Bhamla MS. Ultrafast reversible self-assembly of living tangled matter. Science 2023; 380:392-398. [PMID: 37104611 PMCID: PMC11194538 DOI: 10.1126/science.ade7759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
Tangled active filaments are ubiquitous in nature, from chromosomal DNA and cilia carpets to root networks and worm collectives. How activity and elasticity facilitate collective topological transformations in living tangled matter is not well understood. We studied California blackworms (Lumbriculus variegatus), which slowly form tangles in minutes but can untangle in milliseconds. Combining ultrasound imaging, theoretical analysis, and simulations, we developed and validated a mechanistic model that explains how the kinematics of individual active filaments determines their emergent collective topological dynamics. The model reveals that resonantly alternating helical waves enable both tangle formation and ultrafast untangling. By identifying generic dynamical principles of topological self-transformations, our results can provide guidance for designing classes of topologically tunable active materials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vishal P. Patil
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, 475 Via Ortega, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Harry Tuazon
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30318, USA
| | - Emily Kaufman
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30318, USA
| | - Tuhin Chakrabortty
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30318, USA
| | - David Qin
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Jörn Dunkel
- Department of Mathematics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - M. Saad Bhamla
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30318, USA
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Wu S, Li JX, Lei QL. Facilitated dynamics of an active polymer in 2D crowded environments with obstacles. SOFT MATTER 2022; 18:9263-9272. [PMID: 36441607 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm00974a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the behaviors of a single active chain in complex environments is not only an interesting topic in non-equilibrium physics but also has applicative implications in biological/medical engineering. In this work, by using molecular simulations, we systematically study the dynamical and conformational behaviors of an active polymer in crowded environments, i.e., a single active chain confined in 2D space with randomly arranged obstacles. We found that the competition between the chain's activity and rigidity in the presence of obstacles leads to many interesting dynamical and conformational states, such as the diffusive expanded state, the diffusive collapsed state, and the localized collapsed state. Importantly, we found a counter-intuitive phenomenon, i.e., crowded environments facilitate the diffusion of the active polymer within a large parameter space. As the crowdedness (packing fraction of obstacles) increases, the parameter space in which crowding-enhanced diffusion occurs still remains. This abnormal dynamics is attributed to a structural reason that the obstacles prevent active chains from collapsing. Our findings capture some generic features of active polymers in complex environments and provide insights into the design of novel drug delivery systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Song Wu
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and Department of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China.
| | - Jia-Xiang Li
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and Department of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China.
| | - Qun-Li Lei
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and Department of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China.
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