Membranes, primarily composed of lipid bilayers, shape and compartmentalize cells. Cell architecture is highly dynamic, with membrane conformation changing significantly during processes like movement, division, and vesicle trafficking. Over the past 20 years, I have pursued collaborative research at the intersection of membrane mechanics and biophysics.
In collaboration with the experimental group of Dr. Rumiana Dimova (Membrane Biophysics Lab, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Germany), my theoretical insights advanced understanding of cell deformation and membrane poration in electric fields [Vlahovska et al. 2009], and guided the development of novel, non-invasive experimental methods to characterize key membrane properties, including membrane capacitance [Salipante et al, 2012], bending rigidity of charged membranes [Faizi et al, 2019], and the elusive membrane viscosity [Faizi et al, 2022]. In partnership with Dr.~Mylonakis from Brown Medical School, we developed an innovative assay using giant vesicles to evaluate the efficacy of membrane-targeting antibiotics [Kim et al, 2018]. The work I initiated with Prof.~Granek (Ben-Gurion University, Israel) [Faizi et al, 2024] demonstrated that membrane viscosity—previously overlooked—is a critical factor in membrane bending and reshaping, offering new insights into cellular structure and function.