Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Local mapping of the nanoscale viscoelastic properties of fluid membranes by AFM nanorheology

Trewby, William; Tavakol, Mahdi; Voïtchovsky, Kislon

Local mapping of the nanoscale viscoelastic properties of fluid membranes by AFM nanorheology Thumbnail


Authors



Abstract

Biological membranes are intrinsically dynamic entities that continually adapt their biophysical properties and molecular organisation to support cellular function. Current microscopy techniques can derive high-resolution structural information of labelled molecules but quantifying the associated viscoelastic behaviour with nanometre precision remains challenging. Here, we develop an approach based on atomic force microscopy in conjunction with fast nano-actuators to map the viscoelastic response of unlabelled supported membranes with nanometre spatial resolution. On fluid membranes, we show that the method can quantify local variations in the molecular mobility of the lipids and derive a diffusion coefficient. We confirm our experimental approach with molecular dynamics simulations, also highlighting the role played by the water at the interface with the membrane on the measurement. Probing ternary model bilayers reveals spatial correlations in the local diffusion over distances of ≈20 nm within liquid disordered domains. This lateral correlation is enhanced in native bovine lens membranes, where the inclusion of protein-rich domains induces four-fold variations in the diffusion coefficient across < 100 nm of the fluid regions, consistent with biological function. Our findings suggest that diffusion is highly localised in fluid biomembranes.

Citation

Trewby, W., Tavakol, M., & Voïtchovsky, K. (2025). Local mapping of the nanoscale viscoelastic properties of fluid membranes by AFM nanorheology. Nature Communications, 16, Article 3842. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59260-w

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Apr 15, 2025
Online Publication Date Apr 24, 2025
Publication Date Apr 24, 2025
Deposit Date May 20, 2025
Publicly Available Date May 20, 2025
Journal Nature Communications
Electronic ISSN 2041-1723
Publisher Nature Research
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 16
Article Number 3842
DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59260-w
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3804040

Files





You might also like



Downloadable Citations