Berlin 2018 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 10: Postersession II

BP 10.22: Poster

Monday, March 12, 2018, 17:30–19:30, Poster C

A 2-D Continuum Model of Cell Migration — •Behnam Amiri and Martin Falcke — Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine(MDC), Berlin, Germany.

Actin-based cell migration is critical for many biological processes including embryonic development and tumor metastasis. At the leading edge of the motile cells, polymerization of actin filaments creates the force necessary for protrusion. Here we present a 2-dimensional continuum model for the lamellipodia dynamics of a motile cell. The model quantitatively describes the pushing forces exerted by newly polymerized filaments in a semi-flexible layer behind the leading edge, and their effect on the retrograde flow of the cytoskeleton and the membrane protrusion. We will demonstrate that the interplay between these components can determine the most prominent aspects of the cell morphodynamics. The developed modeling framework consists of a coupled system of Reaction-Diffusion-Advection PDEs for cytoskeleton components, a stokes flow PDE for velocity profile of the cytoskeleton and a Reaction-Advection PDE for the properties of filaments in the semi-flexible region along the leading edge. All of these equations must be computed in the unsteady moving cell domain and with appropriate boundary conditions at the moving cell boundary. In order to numerically solve this hybrid continuum model, we use a moving boundary finite element scheme for free boundary problems. Our model gives insight into how actin polymerization at the leading edge can affect the overall morphodynamics of the cell.