Cells responding to chemoattractant on a structured substrate

Russbach, Laura; Ecke, Mary; Raedler, Joachim O.; Leu, Charlott und Gerisch, Gunther (2022): Cells responding to chemoattractant on a structured substrate. In: Biophysical Journal, Vol. 121, No. 13: pp. 2557-2567

Abstract

Cell migration on an adhesive substrate surface comprises actin-based protrusion at the front and retraction of the tail in combination with coordinated adhesion to, and detachment from, the substrate. To study the effect of cell-to-substrate adhesion on the chemotactic response of Dictyostelium discoideum cells, we exposed the cells to patterned substrate surfaces consisting of adhesive and inert areas, and forced them by a gradient of chemoattractant to enter the border between the two areas. Wild-type as well as myosin II-deficient cells stop at the border of an adhesive area. They do not detach with their rear part, while on the nonad-hesive area they protrude pseudopods at their front toward the source of chemoattractant. Avoidance of the nonadhesive area may cause a cell to move in tangential direction relative to the attractant gradient, keeping its tail at the border of the adhesive surface.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Faculties: Physics
• Subjects: 500 Science > 530 Physics
• ISSN: 0006-3495
• Language: English