Ion pump activity generates fluctuating electrostatic forces in biomembranes

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Published 28 September 2011 Europhysics Letters Association
, , Citation B. Loubet and M. A. Lomholt 2011 EPL 96 28002 DOI 10.1209/0295-5075/96/28002

0295-5075/96/2/28002

Abstract

We study the non-equilibrium dynamics of lipid membranes with proteins that actively pump ions across the membrane. We find that the activity leads to a fluctuating force distribution due to electrostatic interactions arising from the variation in the dielectric constant across the membrane. By applying a multipole expansion we find effects on both the tension and bending rigidity dominated parts of the membranes fluctuation spectrum. We discuss how our model compares with previous studies of force-multipole models.

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10.1209/0295-5075/96/28002