BPCPPDYSOE21 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 11: Poster A: Single Molecule, Multicellular, Bioimaging, Focus Sessions, etc.
BP 11.38: Poster
Monday, March 22, 2021, 16:30–19:00, BPp
Mechanical phenotyping beyond geometrical constraints using virtual fluidic channels — •Muzaffar Panhwar1, Fabian Czerwinski1, Venkata A.S. Dabbirru1, Yesaswini Komaragiri1, Peter Nestler1, Bob Fregin1, Ricardo H. Pires1, Doreen Biedenweg2, and Oliver Otto1 — 1AG Biomechanic, ZIK-HIKE, Universität Greifswald, Greifswald, Deutschland — 2Universitätsmedizin Greifswald, Greifswald, Deutschland
Microfluidic techniques have proven to be of key importance for achieving high-throughput cell mechanical measurements. However, their design modifications require sophisticated cleanroom equipment. Here, we introduce virtual fluidic channels as a flexible and robust alternative to Poly-dimethylsiloxane chips. Virtual channels are liquid-bound fluid flows that can be tailored in three dimensions within seconds for rheological studies on a wide size range of biological samples. While cell deformation inside standard hard-wall constrictions is mainly driven by shear stress, virtual channel possess an additional normal stress component originating from the liquid-liquid interface. We demonstrate that this interface acts as a high-frequency liquid cantilever for probing cell rheology on a millisecond timescale. In proof-of principle experiments, cells are treated with cytochalasin D to inhibit actin polymerization. A significant reduction in the Young's modulus is found compared to untreated cells. In addition, we utilize virtual channels to measure the mechanical properties of single cells and spheroids as a tissue model system. Our results indicate that the Young's modulus of single cells exceeds the one of tissue by one order of magnitude.