This is an overview of theoretical approaches to semiflexible polymers and their networks.
Such semiflexible polymers have large bending rigidities that can compete with the entropic …

Living systems operate far from thermodynamic equilibrium. Enzymatic activity can induce
broken detailed balance at the molecular scale. This molecular scale breaking of detailed …

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex assembly of structural proteins that provides
physical support and biochemical signaling to cells in tissues. The mechanical properties of …

Living cells are viscoelastic materials, dominated by an elastic response on timescales
longer than a millisecond. On shorter timescales, the dynamics of individual cytoskeleton …

Living cells are an active soft material with fascinating mechanical properties. Under
mechanical loading, cells exhibit creep and stress relaxation behavior that follows a power …

Despite their overwhelming complexity, living cells display a high degree of internal
mechanical and functional organization which can largely be attributed to the intracellular …

It is now widely appreciated that normal tissue morphology and function rely upon cells'
ability to sense and generate forces appropriate to their correct tissue context. Although the …

The actin cytoskeleton, a network of protein-polymers, is responsible for the mechanical
stability of cells. This biopolymer network is also crucial for processes that require spatial …

From the cell cytoskeleton to connective tissues, fibrous networks are ubiquitous in
metazoan life as the key promoters of mechanical strength, support and integrity. In recent …

Every adherent eukaryotic cell exerts appreciable traction forces upon its substrate.
Moreover, every resident cell within the heart, great vessels, bladder, gut or lung routinely …