Large self-assembled clathrin lattices spontaneously disassemble without sufficient adaptor proteins
Fig 6
Curved-cage assembly in solution requires added stabilization, which is comparable to membrane bending energies.
(A) Clathrin cages with adaptors present do not form in solution (black dots), using the same model as on the membrane (open circles), despite the same concentration of clathrin. With added stabilization for all clathrin-clathrin bonds (ΔG) and reduced strain (ΔGstrain), solutions cages start to form (red and blue), although growth is less cooperative without dimensional reduction following membrane localization. (B) Membrane bending energy per clathrin trimer as the sizes n of curved lattices are increased. More highly curved cages (α = 98o) cost more energy per trimer to bend the membrane. The membrane energy is proportional to the bending modulus κ, where we use κ = 20 kBT consistent with measurements on the plasma membrane [67].