Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

A human induced pluripotent stem cell model for the holistic study of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transitions.

Nature methods·2026

Same author

Intracellular pH dynamics promotes zebrafish larval tail regeneration.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

Galvanin (TMEM154) is an electric-field sensor for directed cell migration.

Cell·2026

Same author

Three cryo-EM structures of complement C3d-bound α<sub>M</sub>β<sub>2</sub> reveal an unexpected layer of dynamics for αI-containing integrin receptors.

Science advances·2026

Same author

Myo1e/f regulate phagocytic podosomes to promote efficient cup closure in macrophages.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

¹⁹F MRI radiomic features: in vitro and in vivo repeatability.

European radiology experimental·2026

Same journal

Author Correction: Direct inoculation of bioreactor-controlled stirred suspension culture with cryopreserved human pluripotent stem cells.

Nature protocols·2026

Same journal

High-throughput measurements of protein domain functions using magnetic separation.

Nature protocols·2026

Same journal

Inducing physiological polarity and performing gene editing using CRISPR-Cas9 in human trophoblast organoids.

Nature protocols·2026

Same journal

Photocatalytic low-temperature defluorination of PTFE.

Nature protocols·2026

Same journal

Multimodal imaging and quantification of lanthanide chelate-labeled micro- and nanoplastics in plants.

Nature protocols·2026

Same journal

Facilitating structure-based drug discovery with an artificial intelligence-driven virtual screening platform.

Nature protocols·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 9, 2026

Control of Cell Adhesion using Hydrogel Patterning Techniques for Applications in Traction Force Microscopy

Control of Cell Adhesion using Hydrogel Patterning Techniques for Applications in Traction Force Microscopy

Published on: January 29, 2022

Using tunable hydrogel microparticles to measure cellular forces.

Alvja Mali¹, Youri Peeters¹, Rick Rodrigues de Mercado²

¹Department of Cell Biology and Immunology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands.

Nature Protocols

|December 4, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers developed a new method using tunable hydrogel microparticles to measure cellular forces. This technique quantifies forces in cell adhesion, migration, and immune cell interactions, advancing mechanobiology research.

More Related Videos

Single Cell Durotaxis Assay for Assessing Mechanical Control of Cellular Movement and Related Signaling Events

Single Cell Durotaxis Assay for Assessing Mechanical Control of Cellular Movement and Related Signaling Events

Published on: August 27, 2019

Pattern Generation for Micropattern Traction Microscopy

Pattern Generation for Micropattern Traction Microscopy

Published on: February 17, 2022

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jan 9, 2026

Control of Cell Adhesion using Hydrogel Patterning Techniques for Applications in Traction Force Microscopy

Control of Cell Adhesion using Hydrogel Patterning Techniques for Applications in Traction Force Microscopy

Published on: January 29, 2022

Single Cell Durotaxis Assay for Assessing Mechanical Control of Cellular Movement and Related Signaling Events

Single Cell Durotaxis Assay for Assessing Mechanical Control of Cellular Movement and Related Signaling Events

Published on: August 27, 2019

Pattern Generation for Micropattern Traction Microscopy

Pattern Generation for Micropattern Traction Microscopy

Published on: February 17, 2022

Area of Science:

Cellular Mechanobiology
Biophysics
Biomaterials

Background:

Cellular force generation is critical for biological processes like adhesion, migration, and division.
Understanding cell-to-cell mechanical interactions, especially in immunity, is vital but challenging.
Accurate measurement of cellular forces is essential for deciphering mechanobiological mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

To present a novel methodology for quantifying cellular forces using deformable hydrogel microparticles.
To demonstrate the utility of these microparticles for studying various cellular processes.
To provide a user-friendly and accessible technique for force measurement in cell biology.

Main Methods:

Synthesis of deformable poly-acrylamide co-acrylic acid microparticles (DAAM-particles) via membrane emulsification.
One-pot functionalization of DAAM-particles with biological cues and fluorescent labels.
Incubation of cells with functionalized particles, followed by confocal microscopy and custom image analysis for super-resolution deformation quantification.
Application of elasticity theory to infer normal and shear forces from particle deformation.

Main Results:

Quantification of local microparticle deformations with super-resolution accuracy (<50 nm).
Inference of normal and shear forces, revealing direction and spatial distribution of cellular forces.
Demonstration of actin-based force generation during macrophage phagocytosis using the DAAM-particle method.

Conclusions:

DAAM-particles offer a tunable and versatile tool for quantifying cellular forces across diverse biological applications.
This methodology provides a valuable advancement for mechanobiology research, requiring minimal specialized equipment and expertise.
The technique enables detailed insights into cellular force generation, particularly in processes like phagocytosis.