中国物理B ›› 2023, Vol. 32 ›› Issue (11): 118705-118705.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/acf704
所属专题： SPECIAL TOPIC — Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Physics Discipline of Northwest University
Directional-to-random transition of cell cluster migration
Yang Zeng(曾阳)1,†, Bingchen Che(车丙晨)2,†, Dan Sun(孙聃)1,†, Ce Zhang(张策)1,‡, and Guangyin Jing(经光银)2,§
- 1 State Key Laboratory of Photon-Technology in Western China Energy, Institute of Photonics and Photon-Technology, Northwest University, Xi'an 710127, China;
2 School of Physics, Northwest University, Xi'an 710127, China
Directional-to-random transition of cell cluster migration
Yang Zeng(曾阳)1,†, Bingchen Che(车丙晨)2,†, Dan Sun(孙聃)1,†, Ce Zhang(张策)1,‡, and Guangyin Jing(经光银)2,§
- 1 State Key Laboratory of Photon-Technology in Western China Energy, Institute of Photonics and Photon-Technology, Northwest University, Xi'an 710127, China;
2 School of Physics, Northwest University, Xi'an 710127, China
摘要： Efficient cell migration is crucial for the functioning of biological processes, e.g., morphogenesis, wound healing, and cancer metastasis. In this study, we monitor the migratory behavior of the 3D fibroblast clusters using live cell microscopy, and find that crowded environment affects cell migration, i.e., crowding leads to directional migration at the cluster's periphery. The number of cell layers being stacked during seeding determines the directional-to-random transition. Intriguingly, the migratory behavior of cell clusters resembles the dispersion dynamics of clouds of passive particles, indicating that the biological process is driven by physical effects (e.g., entropy) rather than cell communication. Our findings highlight the role of intrinsic physical characteristics, such as crowding, in regulating biological behavior, and suggest new therapeutic approaches targeting at cancer metastasis.
中图分类号: (Cell aggregation)
- 87.18.Ed