Ordered patterns of cell shape and orientational correlation during spontaneous cell migration.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In the absence of stimuli, most motile eukaryotic cells move by spontaneously coordinating cell deformation with cell movement in the absence of stimuli. Yet little is known about how cells change their own shape and how cells coordinate the deformation and movement. Here, we investigated the mechanism of spontaneous cell migration by using computational analyses.

Methodology

We observed spontaneously migrating Dictyostelium cells in both a vegetative state (round cell shape and slow motion) and starved one (elongated cell shape and fast motion). We then extracted regular patterns of morphological dynamics and the pattern-dependent systematic coordination with filamentous actin (F-actin) and cell movement by statistical dynamic analyses.

Conclusions/significanc

SUBMITTER: Maeda YT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2581918 | biostudies-literature | 2008

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature