Fractionation by Spatially Heterogeneous Diffusion: Experiments and the Two-Component Random Walk Model.

The fundamental question regarding the fractionation phenomenon is whether diffusion alone is responsible for it or whether an additional advection dynamic is involved. We studied the fractionation by diffusion of particles in spatially heterogeneous environments. By experimentally observing the time-sequential fractionation patterns of dye particles diffusing across a solid-solid interface of varying polyacrylamide gel densities, we found that the two-component diffusion model accurately captures the observed fractionation dynamics.

Water Hydrogen-Bond Mediated Layer by Layer Alignment of Lipid Rafts as a Precursor of Intermembrane Processes.

Lipid rafts, which are dynamic nanodomains in the plasma membrane, play a crucial role in intermembrane processes by clustering together and growing in size within the plane of the membrane while also aligning with each other across different membranes. However, the physical origin of layer by layer alignment of lipid rafts remains to be elucidated. Here, by using fluorescence imaging and synchrotron X-ray reflectivity in a phase-separated multilayer system, we find that the alignment of raft-mimicking L domains is regulated by the distance between bilayers.