Geometry-Driven Polarity in Motile Amoeboid Cells.

ABSTRACT: Motile eukaryotic cells, such as leukocytes, cancer cells, and amoeba, typically move inside the narrow interstitial spacings of tissue or soil. While most of our knowledge of actin-driven eukaryotic motility was obtained from cells that move on planar open surfaces, recent work has demonstrated that confinement can lead to strongly altered motile behavior. Here, we report experimental evidence that motile amoeboid cells undergo a spontaneous symmetry breaking in confined interstitial spaces. Inside narrow channels, the cells switch to a highly persistent, unidirectional mode of motion, moving at a constant speed along the channel. They remain in contact with the two opposing channel side walls and alternate protrusions of their leading edge near each wall. Their actin cytoskeleton exhibit

SUBMITTER: Nagel O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4262208 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature