Biomechanical Response of Cancer Stem Cells to Low-Intensity Ultrasound

The presence of stem cells in cancer may increase the chances of drug resistance and invasiveness. Low-intensity ultrasound (LIUS) can regulate the biological and mechanical properties of cells and participate in cellular migration and differentiation. Although LIUS has shown significant potential in cancer treatment, the effects of LIUS on migration and drug resistance of cancer stem cells (CSCs) are unclear from a biomechanical perspective. Hence, the objective of this work is to analyze the biomechanical response of LIUS to CSCs. In this study, we selected human ovarian cancer cell line A2780 and ovarian cancer stem cells (OCSCs) were enriched from A2780 cells and observed that OCSCs had higher drug sensitivity and lower invasiveness than A2780 cells after LIUS exposure. Furthermore, we further analyzed the changes in cell morphology, cytoskeleton, and membrane stiffness of A2780 cells and OCSCs at various intensities of LIUS, these results showed that LIUS could induce morphological changes, F-actin formation and increase membrane stiffness, which could help to suppress migration and reduce the drug resistance of OCSCs. Our findings will help establish a better understanding of the biomechanical response to LIUS in CSCs, and future studies on cancer will benefit from the careful consideration of the cellular response of CSCs to LIUS stimulation, ultimately allowing for the development of more effective therapies.