Mechanosensation is an essential behavior for cellular health that depends on the interactions between the plasma membrane and stretch-activated ion channels. To date, a few studies have measured the effect of membrane composition on protein behaviors from folding to function. However, the relationship between membrane mechanical properties and these behaviors...
Metal nanoparticles in polymeric matrices are of particular scientific interest due to their useful ability to self-assemble into complex nanocomposites. Recent examples involve using ultrathin diblock copolymers coupled with metal nanoparticles in the fabrication of novel electronic, magnetic and photonic devices. As this ordering process takes place far from equilibrium...