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Integrin Clustering Is Driven by Mechanical Resistance from the Glycocalyx and the Substrate
Figure 4
The glycocalyx mediates integrin binding cooperativity and clustering on rigid matrixes.
(A) Hill plots of the steady-state integrin bond fraction versus ligand density for various effective glycocalyx thicknesses (lg−lb). The best-fit lines to the Hill equation are also shown. Bond fractions were determined by simulating integrin dynamics on rigid ECM substrates; 
s−1. (B) The Hill coefficients derived from non-linear least squares curve fitting of the Hill plots. (C) The extent of integrin clustering, as indicated by the Ripley K-statistic (maximum R(s)), as a function of effective glycocalyx thickness. (D) Correlation between integrin binding cooperativity (nHill) and the extent of integrin clustering. (E) Maps of the steady-state xy- integrin positions in the membrane for different effective glycocalyx thicknesses.
doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000604.g004