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Phenomenological approaches to collective behavior in epithelial cell migration
Matthias L Zorn1, Anna-Kristina Marel1, Felix J Segerer1
1Fakultät für Physik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539 München, Germany; Center for NanoScience, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539 München, Germany.
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta
|June 2, 2015
Summary
Collective cell migration in epithelial tissues exhibits fluid-like dynamics. This review explores hydrodynamic velocity fields and emergent properties in cellular ensembles, linking them to mechanobiology.
Area of Science:
- Mechanobiology
- Soft Matter Physics
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Collective cell migration in epithelial tissues displays fluid-like behavior.
- Hydrodynamic velocity fields in living matter are increasingly studied.
- Emergent properties resemble active soft matter systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review migration experiments of cellular ensembles and cohorts.
- To discuss metrics for quantifying cellular dynamics.
- To link phenotypic parameters to cytoskeleton dynamics and signaling networks.
Main Methods:
- Review of experimental studies on collective cell migration.
- Analysis of mesoscopic cohorts in micro-structured environments.
- Computational simulations of cellular dynamics.
Main Results:
- Collective cell migration exhibits fluid-like properties.
- Metrics like diffusion, velocity correlations, swirl strength, and polarization quantify dynamics.
- Similarities observed between cellular systems and active soft matter.
Conclusions:
- Collective cell migration shares principles with active soft matter.
- Understanding the link between phenotypic parameters and underlying cellular mechanisms is crucial.
- Further research is needed to bridge collective, oligocellular, and single-cell behaviors.
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