Berlin 2024 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 28: Cytoskeleton
BP 28.3: Talk
Thursday, March 21, 2024, 10:00–10:15, H 2032
Actin filament length is crucial in mesenchymal migration but not in amoeboid migration — •Carsten Baltes1, Friederike Nolle1,2, Kathi Kaiser1, Erbara Gjana1, Kristin Sander1, Karin Jacobs1,2, and Franziska Lautenschläger1,2 — 1Experimental Physics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany — 2Center for Biophysics, Saarbrücken, Germany
The ability of cells to move is critical for a wide variety of cellular tasks inlcuding the search of immune cells for pathogens and the reorganization of cells in tissue development. The cytoskeletal protein actin is important for cellular migration as it is involved in its underlying mechanics. Alterations of the actin network therefore might have an impact on the migratory behaviour of cells.
Here, I present the effects of the stabilisation and elongation of actin filaments on migrating RPE-1 cells. I will show that mesenchymal migrating cells move at lower speed, while amoeboid migrating cells do not change their behaviour.
Cells with longer and more stable actin filaments have more but smaller focal adhesions. To test the effect on adhesion properties, we performed single-cell force spectroscopy. Cells with smaller focal adhesions showed lower adhesion strength and energy, suggesting that actin filament length is important for adhesion-based migration but negligible for friction-based migration.
This work emphasizes the different role of actin in mesenchymal versus amoeboid migration and adhesion and might help to influence all processes involving migration.
Keywords: Actin; Migration; Adhesion; single-cell force spectroscopy