Elastocapillary Instability in Mitochondrial Fission

David Gonzalez-Rodriguez (1) , Sébastien Sart (1) , Avin Babataheri (1) , David Tareste (2) , Abdul I. Barakat (1) , Christophe Clanet (1) , Julien Husson (1)

1 LadHyX - Laboratoire d'hydrodynamique
2 IJM (UMR_7592) - Institut Jacques Monod

Mitochondria are dynamic cell organelles that constantly undergo fission and fusion events. These dynamical processes, which tightly regulate mitochondrial morphology, are essential for cell physiology. Here we propose an elastocapillary mechanical instability as a mechanism for mitochondrial fission. We experimentally induce mitochondrial fission by rupturing the cell's plasma membrane. We present a stability analysis that successfully explains the observed fission wavelength and the role of mitochondrial morphology in the occurrence of fission events. Our results show that the laws of fluid mechanics can describe mitochondrial morphology and dynamics.

Domains: Physics [physics]; Mechanics [physics]; Fluid mechanics [physics.class-ph]

David Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Sébastien Sart, Avin Babataheri, David Tareste, Abdul I. Barakat, et al.. Elastocapillary Instability in Mitochondrial Fission. Physical Review Letters, 2015, 115 (8), pp.088102. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevLett.115.088102⟩. ⟨hal-01207379⟩