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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 12, 2026

Microscopy Based Methods for the Assessment of Epithelial Cell Migration During In Vitro Wound Healing

Microscopy Based Methods for the Assessment of Epithelial Cell Migration During In Vitro Wound Healing

Published on: January 2, 2018

Quantifying stretching and rearrangement in epithelial sheet migration.

Rachel M Lee¹, Douglas H Kelley, Kerstin N Nordstrom

¹Department of Physics and Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.

New Journal of Physics

|April 20, 2013

Summary

Collective cell migration, crucial for cancer metastasis, was analyzed using soft matter physics metrics. Cell sheets exhibit non-chaotic flow, with localized stretching at the leading edge, and increased plastic rearrangements at higher cell densities.

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Last Updated: May 12, 2026

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Quantitative Analysis of Cell Edge Dynamics during Cell Spreading

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Published on: May 22, 2021

Area of Science:

Biophysics
Cell Biology
Soft Matter Physics

Background:

Collective cell migration is vital for development and disease, yet less understood than individual cell movement.
Understanding epithelial sheet dynamics is key to addressing diseases like metastatic cancer.

Purpose of the Study:

To quantitatively characterize collective cell migration using soft matter physics principles.
To differentiate motion types within migrating cell sheets and analyze their dynamics.

Main Methods:

Finite-Time Lyapunov Exponent (FTLE) analysis to assess flow field characteristics.
Decomposition of cell motion into affine and non-affine components using the D2min metric.
Quantitative analysis of local plastic rearrangements.

Main Results:

The flow field of epithelial cell sheets was found to be non-chaotic, despite fluctuations.
Cell sheet stretching (positive FTLE) was localized at the leading edge and intensified with stimulation.
Plastic rearrangements increased with cell density, contrasting with inanimate systems.

Conclusions:

Collective cell migration dynamics can be effectively described using soft matter metrics.
Cell density significantly influences plastic rearrangements in migrating cell sheets.
FTLE analysis provides insights into the localized stretching dynamics at the leading edge of cell migration.