Microparticle traction force microscopy reveals subcellular force exertion patterns in immune cell-target interactions.

ABSTRACT: Force exertion is an integral part of cellular behavior. Traction force microscopy (TFM) has been instrumental for studying such forces, providing spatial force measurements at subcellular resolution. However, the applications of classical TFM are restricted by the typical planar geometry. Here, we develop a particle-based force sensing strategy for studying cellular interactions. We establish a straightforward batch approach for synthesizing uniform, deformable and tuneable hydrogel particles, which can also be easily derivatized. The 3D shape of such particles can be resolved with superresolution (<50 nm) accuracy using conventional confocal microscopy. We introduce a reference-free computational method allowing inference of traction forces with high sensitivity directly from the particl

SUBMITTER: Vorselen D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6946705 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature