Tube width fluctuations in F-actin solutions

We determine the statistics of the local tube width in F-actin solutions, beyond the usually reported mean value. Our experimental observations are explained by a segment fluid theory based on the binary collision approximation. In this systematic generalization of the standard mean-field approach, effective polymer segments interact via a potential representing the topological constraints. The analytically predicted universal tube width distribution with a stretched tail is in good agreement with the data.