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Related Concept Videos

Cell Migration01:09

Cell Migration

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Cell migration, the process by which cells move from one location to another, is essential for the proper development and viability of organisms throughout their life. When cells are not able to migrate properly to their ordained locations, various disorders may occur. For example, disruption in cell migration causes chronic inflammatory diseases such as arthritis.
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Cell Migration01:19

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Cell migration is a process by which the cells move from one location to another, playing an essential role in embryological development, repair and regeneration, immune response, and metastasis. Cells migrate in response to chemical or mechanical signals generated by specific organs or tissues. The overall mechanism includes three steps - polarization, protrusion, and release. Polarization involves the formation of a distinct cell front and rear, which determines the direction of movement.
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Cells can detect chemical cues in their environment and reorganize the cytoskeleton to migrate toward them or away from them. This directional migration, called chemotaxis, is essential during embryogenesis and development, immune response, tissue repair and regeneration, and reproduction. These chemical cues can either attract or repel the cell's movement. For example, axon development is determined by a combination of chemoattractants and chemorepellents that direct the growing axon...
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A migrating cell changes its shape during the cyclic events of attachment and detachment from the substratum and repositions the cell organelles correspondingly. These complex events are orchestrated by the dynamic cytoskeletal network comprising actin filaments, intermediate filaments, and microtubules. Cytoskeletal crosstalk — the direct and indirect communication between the different components — is crucial for this coordination. Direct communication involves various linker...
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Actin is a family of globular proteins that are highly abundant in eukaryotic cells. It makes up approximately 1-5% of total cell protein concentration. Actin monomers polymerize to form a complex network of polarized filaments, the actin cytoskeleton, that plays a crucial role in many cellular processes, including cell motility, division, endocytosis, and metastasis of cancer cells.
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Cell polarity is the asymmetric distribution of cellular and membrane components, making one side of the cell different from the other. This polarity is essential to many processes such as embryogenesis, axon migration, glucose transport across epithelial cells, and directional cell migration. A migrating cell responds to intracellular or extracellular signals via molecular cascades that reorganize the actin cytoskeleton to establish this polarity. In these cells, the Rho family proteins Cdc42,...
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Creating Adhesive and Soluble Gradients for Imaging Cell Migration with Fluorescence Microscopy
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Blue Light-Directed Cell Migration, Aggregation, and Patterning.

Jingyun Zhang1, Yuhuan Luo2, Chueh Loo Poh1

  • 1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, 4 Engineering Drive 3, Singapore 117583, Singapore; NUS Synthetic Biology for Clinical and Technological Innovation (SynCTI), Life Sciences Institute, National University of Singapore, 28 Medical Drive, Singapore 117456, Singapore.

Journal of Molecular Biology
|April 6, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Scientists engineered a synthetic genetic circuit to control bacterial movement using blue light. This allows precise spatial control for applications like pattern formation and separating bacterial strains.

Keywords:
directional motilityoptogeneticspatterningstrain separationsynthetic gene circuits

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Area of Science:

  • Synthetic biology
  • Microbiology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • Bacterial motility is crucial for cellular activities like migration and biofilm formation.
  • Current methods for controlling motility, such as chemotaxis, lack precise spatial control.
  • Controlling bacterial movement has potential applications in pathogen detection and drug delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a blue light-regulated synthetic genetic circuit for precise control of bacterial directional motility.
  • To overcome the limitations of traditional chemotaxis methods for bacterial pattern formation.
  • To demonstrate the utility of light-controllable gene circuits in manipulating bacterial behavior.

Main Methods:

  • Engineered a synthetic genetic circuit in Escherichia coli to regulate motility in response to blue light.
  • Utilized negative phototaxis, causing bacteria to move away from blue light.
  • Demonstrated pattern formation and separation of bacterial strains using the developed circuit.

Main Results:

  • Programmed E. coli exhibited increased directional motility controlled by blue light.
  • Achieved controlled aggregation and pattern formation of bacterial populations.
  • Successfully separated two different bacterial strains using the blue light-inducible circuit.

Conclusions:

  • Blue light-regulated synthetic gene circuits offer precise spatial and temporal control over bacterial motility.
  • This technology enables novel applications in bacterial pattern formation and strain separation.
  • The developed circuit provides researchers with enhanced tools for manipulating bacterial behavior.