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Investigation of Macrophage Polarization Using Bone Marrow Derived Macrophages
Published on: June 23, 2013
Baseline mechanical characterization of J774 macrophages
Jonathan Lam1, Marc Herant, Micah Dembo
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, California 95616, USA.
Biophysical Journal
|October 7, 2008
Summary
J774 macrophages exhibit higher cortical tension and cytoplasmic viscosity than neutrophils, suggesting these biophysical properties are crucial for immune cell motility and deformation during phagocytosis.
Area of Science:
- Cell biology
- Biophysics
- Immunology
Background:
- Macrophage cell lines, such as J774 cells, serve as valuable models for investigating the biophysical principles governing immune cell mechanics.
- Understanding the physical properties of immune cells is essential for comparative studies on cell motility.
Purpose of the Study:
- To measure the cortical tension and cytoplasmic viscosity of J774 macrophages.
- To compare these properties with those of human neutrophils to understand their role in cell motility.
Main Methods:
- Micropipette aspiration was used to determine the cortical tension and cytoplasmic viscosity of passive J774 cells.
- Scanning electron microscopy was employed to visualize cell surface changes during phagocytosis.
Main Results:
- Passive J774 cells showed a cortical resting tension of approximately 0.14 mN/m and a viscosity of 0.93 kPa.s.
- These values are roughly ten times higher than those measured for human neutrophils.
- J774 cells demonstrated a greater than fivefold increase in apparent surface area during phagocytosis, with membrane wrinkles being smoothed out.
Conclusions:
- The higher cortical tension and cytoplasmic viscosity in J774 macrophages compared to neutrophils support the hypothesis that a precise balance of these factors is a physical prerequisite for eukaryotic cell motility.
- The study highlights the remarkable deformability of J774 cells, enabling significant surface area expansion during phagocytosis despite their inherent stiffness.
