Monte Carlo Study of a Vesicle Morphology Caused by Microtubule Assembly

Abstract

Shape transformations of a vesicle during the polymerization ofan encapsulated microtubule is studied by the Monte Carlo simulations, and the morphology phase diagram is obtained in the phase space of the osmotic pressure p and the microtubule length L₀.The lollipop-like shape with a spherical main body and a protrusionat one end is obtained at a negative p and a moderateL₀. The φ-shape with symmetric two protrusions canbe realized only as a transient shape under a rapid polymerizationof the microtubule at low temperatures.