@article {54,
	title = {Smart helical structures inspired by the pellicle of euglenids},
	journal = {Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids},
	volume = {123},
	year = {2019},
	pages = {234-246},
	abstract = {<p align="justify">This paper deals with a concept for a reconfigurable structure bio-inspired by the cell wall architecture of euglenids, a family of unicellular protists, and based on the relative sliding of adjacent strips. Uniform sliding turns a cylinder resulting from the assembly of straight and parallel strips into a cylinder of smaller height and larger radius, in which the strips are deformed into a family of parallel helices. We examine the mechanics of this cylindrical assembly, in which the interlocking strips are allowed to slide freely at their junctions, and compute the external forces (axial force and axial torque at the two ends, or pressure on the lateral surface) necessary to drive and control the shape changes of the composite structure. Despite the simplicity of the structure, we find a remarkably complex mechanical behaviour that can be tuned by the spontaneous curvature or twist of the strips.\&nbsp;</p>},
	keywords = {Bio-inspired structures, Euglenoid pellicle, Helical bundles, Morphing structures, Reconfigurable structures},
	doi = {10.1016/j.jmps.2018.09.036},
	author = {Noselli, Giovanni and Arroyo, Marino and DeSimone, Antonio}
}
@article {55,
	title = {Swimming Euglena respond to confinement with a behavioural change enabling effective crawling},
	journal = {Nature Physics},
	volume = {15},
	year = {2019},
	pages = {496-502},
	abstract = {<p align="justify">Some euglenids, a family of aquatic unicellular organisms, can develop highly concerted, large-amplitude peristaltic body deformations. This remarkable behaviour has been known for centuries. Yet, its function remains controversial, and is even viewed as a functionless ancestral vestige. Here, by examining swimming Euglena\&thinsp;gracilis in environments of controlled crowding and geometry, we show that this behaviour is triggered by confinement. Under these conditions, it allows cells to switch from unviable flagellar swimming to a new and highly robust mode of fast crawling, which can deal with extreme geometric confinement and turn both frictional and hydraulic resistance into propulsive forces. To understand how a single cell can control such an adaptable and robust mode of locomotion, we developed a computational model of the motile apparatus of Euglena cells consisting of an active striated cell envelope. Our modelling shows that gait adaptability does not require specific mechanosensitive feedback but instead can be explained by the mechanical self-regulation of an elastic and extended motor system. Our study thus identifies a locomotory function and the operating principles of the adaptable peristaltic body deformation of Euglena cells.</p>},
	keywords = {crawling motility, Euglena gracilis, Metaboly, Spatial confinement},
	doi = {10.1038/s41567-019-0425-8},
	author = {Noselli, Giovanni and Beran, Alfred and Arroyo, Marino and DeSimone, Antonio}
}
