Impact of experimental parameters on cell-cell force spectroscopy signature

Oropesa-Nuñez, R., Mescola, A., Vassalli, M. and Canale, C. (2021) Impact of experimental parameters on cell-cell force spectroscopy signature. Sensors, 21(4), 1069. (doi: 10.3390/s21041069) (PMID:33557265)

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Abstract

Atomic force microscopy is an extremely versatile technique, featuring atomic-scale imaging resolution, and also offering the possibility to probe interaction forces down to few pN. Recently, this technique has been specialized to study the interaction between single living cells, one on the substrate, and a second being adhered on the cantilever. Cell–cell force spectroscopy offers a unique tool to investigate in fine detail intra-cellular interactions, and it holds great promise to elucidate elusive phenomena in physiology and pathology. Here we present a systematic study of the effect of the main measurement parameters on cell–cell curves, showing the importance of controlling the experimental conditions. Moreover, a simple theoretical interpretation is proposed, based on the number of contacts formed between the two interacting cells. The results show that single cell–cell force spectroscopy experiments carry a wealth of information that can be exploited to understand the inner dynamics of the interaction of living cells at the molecular level.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Vassalli, Professor Massimo
Creator Roles:
Vassalli, M.Conceptualization, Software, Writing – original draft, Supervision
Authors: Oropesa-Nuñez, R., Mescola, A., Vassalli, M., and Canale, C.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Biomedical Engineering
Journal Name:Sensors
Publisher:MDPI
ISSN:1424-8220
ISSN (Online):1424-8220
Published Online:04 February 2021
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2021 The Authors
First Published:First published in Sensors 21(4):1069
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons licence
Data DOI:10.5525/gla.researchdata.1103

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