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Theory of Spatial Patterns of Intracellular Organelles

Department of Chemical Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106

Correspondence: Address reprint requests and inquiries to Prof. Samir Mitragotri, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106. Tel.: 805-893-7532; Fax: 805-893-4731; E-mail: samir{at}engineering.ucsb.edu.

Here we report on a generalized theory of spatial patterns of intracellular organelles, which are controlled by cells using cytoskeleton-based movements powered by molecular motors. The theory reveals that organelles exhibit one of the four distinct, stable patterns, namely aggregation, hyperdispersion, radial dispersion, and areal dispersion. Existence of specific patterns is determined by the contributions from three transport mechanisms, characterized by two Peclet numbers. The predicted patterns compare well with experimental data. This study provides a firm theoretical ground for classification of spatial patterns of organelles and understanding their regulation by cells.