We characterize the lengthscale-dependent rheological properties of mucus from the
ubiquitous Chaetopterus marine worm. We use optically trapped probes (2–10 μm) to
induce microscopic strains and measure the stress response as a function of oscillation
amplitude. Our results show that viscoelastic properties are highly dependent on strain scale
(l), indicating three distinct lengthscale-dependent regimes at l 1≤ 4 μm, l 2≈ 4–10 μm, and
l 3≥ 10 μm. While mucus response is similar to water for l 1, suggesting that probes rarely …

1. Weigand WJ, Messmore A, Tu J, Morales-Sanz A, Blair DL, Deheyn DD, et al.(2017)
Active microrheology determines scale-dependent material properties of Chaetopterus
mucus. PLoS ONE 12 (5): e0176732. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal. pone. 0176732 pmid:
28562662