2017/03/09 by Sanaz Sadegh, Jenny L. Higgins, Patrick Mannion +2 · 1 citation
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Medicine · #Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior #Cellular transport and secretion #Erythrocyte Function and Pathophysiology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevx.7.011031
openalex publication_date 2017/03/09 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
A broad range of membrane proteins display anomalous diffusion on the cell surface. Different methods provide evidence for obstructed subdiffusion and diffusion on a fractal space, but the underlying structure inducing anomalous diffusion has never been visualized because of experimental challenges. We addressed this problem by imaging the cortical actin at high resolution while simultaneously tracking individual membrane proteins in live mammalian cells. Our data confirm that actin introduces barriers leading to compartmentalization of the plasma membrane and that membrane proteins are transiently confined within actin fences. Furthermore, superresolution imaging shows that the cortical actin is organized into a self-similar meshwork. These results present a hierarchical nanoscale picture of the plasma membrane.