Before revision:  As a specific case study in these effects , we consider the impact of crowding on the gating tension for mechanosensitive channels. We show that crowding can alter the gating energies by more than \approx 2  k_BT  , a substantial fraction of the gating energies themselves in some cases  .
After revision:  As a specific case study in these effects , we consider the impact of crowding on the gating properties of bacterial mechanosensitive membrane channels, which are thought to confer osmoprotection when these cells are subjected to osmotic shock. We find that crowding can alter the gating energies by more than \approx 2 k_BT , a substantial fraction of the gating energies themselves in some cases .