Fig. 1: Light-activated contraction of the actomyosin networks within liposomes.

a Schematic of the light-activation of actomyosin contractility within a liposome encapsulating purified actin and myosin. b Timelapse images showing the mid-plane of the light-activated contracting actomyosin network within a liposome. The dashed line represents the position of the membrane. c The snapshot showing the fluorescently labeled lipid bilayer membrane in a mid-plane. d Actomyosin network contraction with 280 nM myosin. Black arrows are the total displacement, u, over 1 min, and vector magnitudes are normalized by its maximum. Colormap represents local strain fields. Mean compressive strain (e) and strain rate (f) over time (n = 12 liposomes and N = 2 independent experiments in 0 nM; n = 20 and N = 2 in 70 nM; n = 13 and N = 2 in 140 nM; n = 12 and N = 3 in 280 nM). Maximum strain (g) and maximum strain rate (h) extracted from (e) at 120 s and (f) (n = 12 liposomes and N = 2 independent experiments in 0 nM; n = 20 and N = 2 in 70 nM; n = 13 and N = 2 in 140 nM; n = 12 and N = 3 in 280 nM). Curves are mean ± SD. * and *** represent p < 0.05 and p < 0.001, respectively. Scale bars, 10 μm.