Impacts of Structural Properties of Myosin II Filaments on Force Generation

Cells need intracellular forces for their physiological functions, such as migration, cytokinesis, and morphogenesis. The actin cytoskeleton generates a large fraction of the forces via interactions between cytoskeletal components, such as actin filament (F-actin), myosin, and actin cross-linking proteins (ACPs). Myosin II plays the most important role in cellular force generation. Myosin II molecules self-assemble into filaments with different structures depending on myosin II isoforms and other conditions such as pH and ionic concentration. It has remained elusive how force generation in actomyosin structures is affected by the architecture of myosin II filaments. In this study, we employed an agent-based model to investigate the effects of the structural properties of myosin II filaments on force generation in disorganized actomyosin structures. We demonstrated that the magnitude of forces and the efficiency of force generation can vary over a wide range depending on the number and spatial distribution of myosin II filaments. Further, we showed that the number of myosin heads and the length of a bare zone at the center of myosin II filaments without heads highly affect the force generation process in bundles and networks. Our study provides insights into understanding the roles of the structural properties of myosin II filaments in actomyosin contractility.