1. E-cadherin mediated lateral interactions between neighbor cells necessary for collective migration
- Author
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Susan Z. Hua, Kevin Suffoletto, and Deekshitha Jetta
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Cell signaling ,Shear force ,Biomedical Engineering ,Biophysics ,Cell Communication ,Actinin ,Madin Darby Canine Kidney Cells ,03 medical and health sciences ,Dogs ,0302 clinical medicine ,Cell Movement ,Lab-On-A-Chip Devices ,Cell Adhesion ,Shear stress ,Animals ,Orthopedics and Sports Medicine ,Cell adhesion ,Tension (physics) ,Cadherin ,Chemistry ,Rehabilitation ,Epithelial Cells ,Cell migration ,Cadherins ,030104 developmental biology ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
Collective cell movement is critical in pathological processes such as wound healing and cancer invasion. It entails complex interactions between adjacent cells and between cells-extracellular matrices. Most studies measure the migration patterns and force propagation by placing cells on flat, patterned substrates. The cooperative behavior resulting from cell-cell interactions is not well understood. We have developed a multi-channel microfluidic device that has junctional protein E-cadherin coated onto the sidewalls of the channels that enables the cells' lateral interactions with their neighbors to be studied. Our study reveals that epithelial cells rely on lateral E-cadherin-based adhesions to maintain the cohesion of the group. Cells move faster in narrower channels, but the average velocity along the channels is reduced in E-cadherin coated channels versus non-adhesive channels. We have directly measured the forces in the cross-linking protein, alpha-actinin, using FRET sensors during cell migration, and found that higher tension exists at the cell edges adjacent to the walls coated with E-cadherin, the implication being E-cadherin transmits the shear forces but does not provide a driving force for this migration.
- Published
- 2018