Understanding the emergence of collective motion of microtubules driven by kinesins: role of concentration of microtubules and depletion force

Abstract

We investigated the role of the concentration of microtubules and depletion force in the emergence of collective motion of microtubules driven by kinesins. Critical concentrations were found for both microtubules and the depletant to demonstrate the collective motion of microtubules. More importantly, the kinetics of the collective motion were found to be significantly dependent on the concentration of microtubules and the depletant. Substantial variations in the time course of emergence of the collective motion of microtubules were observed in response to the changes in concentration of the microtubules and the depletant. This study provides new insights into the kinetics of the collective motion of microtubules driven by kinesins, which might also be useful in understanding the coordinated behavior of other self-propelled systems.