Figure 11.

Comparison of parasite alignment at flexible RBCs (A and B) and rigid RBCs (C and D) for a = 0 with ϵ_a/k_BT = 5 (A and C) and a = 1 with ϵ_a/k_BT = 8 (B and D), where the interaction gradient is marked by a color code on the parasite surface (purple: maximal interaction strength, green: minimal interaction strength). For flexible RBCs, the observed alignment is better than for the rigid membrane because the parasite can become partially wrapped by the flexible cell membrane (see Videos S4 and S5). For a = 1, the alignment is good in both cases because a configuration with the parasite’s head toward the membrane minimizes the total energy. Here, the illustrations are for the small parasite size. To see this figure in color, go online.