Patch coalescence as a mechanism for eukaryotic directional sensing

Eukaryotic cells possess a sensible chemical compass allowing them to orient toward sources of soluble chemicals. The extracellular chemical signal triggers separation of the cell membrane into two domains populated by different phospholipid molecules and oriented along the signal anisotropy. We propose a theory of this polarization process, which is articulated into subsequent stages of germ nucleation, patch coarsening, and merging into a single domain. We find that the polarization time, t, depends on the anisotropy degree through the power law t-2, and that in a cell of radius R there should exist a threshold value th R-1 for the smallest detectable anisotropy. © 2007 The American Physical Society.