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A Microfluidic Technique to Probe Cell Deformability
Published on: September 3, 2014
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A microfluidic device for characterizing nuclear deformations
Andrew C Hodgson1, Christophe M Verstreken2, Cynthia L Fisher3
1Cavendish Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0HE, UK. kc370@cam.ac.uk.
Lab on a Chip
|January 25, 2017
Summary
Researchers developed a microfluidic chip to measure nuclear deformability under mechanical stress. This tool enables high-throughput physical phenotyping of cells, revealing insights into nuclear responses to force.
Area of Science:
- Biophysics
- Cell Biology
- Microfluidics
Background:
- Cell nuclei are subjected to physical forces in vitro and in vivo.
- Understanding nuclear response to mechanical stress is crucial for cell biology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a microfluidic device for quantifying nuclear deformability under mechanical stress.
- To characterize the physical response of cell nuclei to applied forces.
Main Methods:
- Development of a novel microfluidic chip for applying mechanical stress to live cells.
- Utilized custom Matlab software for quantifying nuclear and cytoplasmic size and strain.
- Employed high-resolution confocal imaging for cell analysis under compression.
Main Results:
- Observed negative Poisson ratios in the nuclei of embryonic stem cells.
- Detected alterations in nuclear response after treatment with actin depolymerizing and chromatin decondensing agents.
- Demonstrated the device's capability for high-throughput, high-resolution imaging of stressed cells.
Conclusions:
- The developed microfluidic device enables accurate physical phenotyping of cells at high throughput.
- The device has broad applicability for studying various cell types and their response to mechanical forces.
- This technology provides a valuable tool for investigating the biomechanics of the cell nucleus.
