Dresden 2020 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 25: Cell Mechanics II
BP 25.1: Talk
Wednesday, March 18, 2020, 15:00–15:15, HÜL 386
Chemotherapy interferes with leukocyte deformability in a cancer patient study — Martin Kräter1,2, Maik Herbig1,2, Martin Bornhäuser3, Jochen Guck1,2, and •Angela Jacobi1,2,3 — 1MPL, Erlangen, Germany — 2BIOTEC, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany — 3University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
Blood cell mechanics, dictated by the cytoskeleton, is essential for circulation in microcapillary networks, where cells need to deform and squeeze through vascular constrictions. If this deformability is attenuated, blood flow can be impeded, leading to thromboembolic complications. Using real-time deformability cytometry (RT-DC), a high-throughput method that determines cell mechanics, we performed a pilot study on blood samples from a cancer patient undergoing chemotherapy with epirubicin/cyclophosphamide (EC) and paclitaxel (P). Over the course of the treatment, we monitored leukocyte count, size and deformability. During the therapy, granulo-/monocytes exhibited a dramatic decrease in deformability. However, 45 weeks post treatment, leukocyte deformability was restored to normal levels, indicating that blood cell mechanics is tightly regulated in homeostatic conditions. Intriguingly, the treatment did not alter cell size, which emphasises the advantage of measuring blood cell deformability when monitoring poor circulation in chemotherapy patients. Finally, our study suggests that reduced blood cell deformation could favour vascular complications encountered during chemotherapy.