Berlin 2008 – wissenschaftliches Programm

Bereiche | Tage | Auswahl | Suche | Downloads | Hilfe

BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 24: Actin Dynamics

BP 24.2: Vortrag

Donnerstag, 28. Februar 2008, 14:30–14:45, C 243

Protrusion force generation of fish keratocytes — •Claudia Brunner, Michael Gögler, Allen Ehrlicher, Bernd Kohlstrunk, and Josef Käs — University of Leipzig

Cell motilitiy is a fundamental process associated with many phenomena in nature, such as immune response, wound healing, and metastasis.On the molecular level, actin polymerization and molecular motors, are involved in cell motility but the mechanism as a whole is not very well understood. Rapidly migrating cells, such as keratocytes, move forward through active protrusion at the leading edge, and retraction/deadhesion of the cells rear, indicating two force generating centers.

Our SFM-based technique uses the vertical and lateral deflection of a modified cantilever and allows direct measurements of the forces exerted by the cell. We present direct measurements of the forward forces generated at the leading edge of the lamellipodium, the cell body and retrograde forces within the lamellipodium. Through selective manipulation of molecular components by addition of different drugs, such as Jasplakinolide, Cytochalasin D, and ML-7 the measured forces and velocity changes can be compared. This leads to new insights concerning the importance of different force generating processes and reveals actin polymerization as the dominant force generating process at the leading edge. On the other hand myosin does not seem to be responsible for the retrograde flow.