Regensburg 2016 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 49: Posters - Cell Mechanics and Migration & Physics of Cancer

BP 49.1: Poster

Mittwoch, 9. März 2016, 17:00–19:00, Poster C

Investigation of Mechanical Properties of the Cytoskeleton Using FEM Simulations — •Ralf Schuster, Tobias Neckernuss, Tobias Paust, Kay Gottschalk, and Othmar Marti — Institute of Experimental Physics, Ulm University, D-89081 Ulm

We show the implementation of structure-bearing parameters in a numerical finite element model of a cell. The point of interest is the interplay between intermediate filament network and mechanical properties. The cytoskeleton is responsible for stiffness and deformability of cells. Changes in structure and shape of cells, caused by external forces, play an important role for cell migration and proliferation. Metastasizing cells can have a softer cytoskeleton through changes in the network. This leads to a reduced resistance against forces.

There are numerical models, concerning cell deformation, but they are either considering the cytoplasm as a continuum, or limit the simulations to microtubules and actin filaments. In contrast we have a closer look at the behavior of intermediate filaments and we implement a 3D-model of the cell, with the intermediate filament network as main component, regarding force transmission and stiffness, to simulate laboratory experiments. Therefore displacements of beads captured in the filament network, caused by an applied force, are simulated and compared to experimental microrheology data. The geometry, material parameters and boundary conditions are varied to find a model reflecting the real behavior of the inside of a cell in an acceptable manner.