Transient Cytoskeletal Anisotropy Encodes Short-Term Mechanical Memory in Glioblastoma Cells

Area of Science:

• Cellular mechanics
• Biophysics
• Cancer cell biology

Background:

• Cells encounter dynamic mechanical forces in their microenvironment.
• Understanding how cells sense and respond to these forces, including short-term memory, is crucial for comprehending cell behavior, especially in diseases like cancer.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate whether and how cells, specifically glioblastoma cells, retain a short-term memory of recent mechanical deformations.
• To elucidate the role of the cytoskeleton, including actin and vimentin, in encoding this mechanical memory.

Main Methods:

• Utilized magneto-mechanical actuation and nanoindentation to apply controlled deformations.
• Employed selective cytoskeletal perturbations to isolate the roles of actin and vimentin.
• Developed a multi-network constitutive model to simulate cell mechanics and memory effects.

Main Results:

• Actin stress fibers stiffen cells under stretch, while the actin cortex softens cells under compression.
• Vimentin intermediate filaments stabilize actin organization, preserving deformation-specific responses.
• Residual cytoskeletal alignment after unloading creates a mechanical memory that decays over minutes to tens of minutes.

Conclusions:

• Glioblastoma cells exhibit a short-term mechanical memory encoded by cytoskeletal anisotropy.
• This memory allows invasive cancer cells to adapt to fluctuating mechanical cues in their microenvironment.
• Targeting vimentin-actin interactions and remodeling kinetics may offer strategies to limit cancer cell adaptability.