IPLS "Paired Talk" - Prof Ewa Paluch (UCL/LMCB) & Dr. Guillaume Salbreux (MPI-CBG, Dresden/Francis Crick Institute)

“Mechanics of cell migration without adhesion”

Abstract: In this paired talk, we will present a study combining theory and experiments to investigate the basic mechanisms of cell migration without substrate adhesions. Substrate adhesions have long been considered essential force transducers during cell migration. However, when confined, cells can migrate without specific substrate attachment, something that could facilitate locomotion through changing environments. We investigated force transuduction during adhesion-free migration. Combining microfluidics, quantitative imaging and theoretical modelling, we could show that actin cortex flows lead to propelling forces via non-specific substrate friction. A threshold friction is required for migration. Above this threshold, the forces propelling the cell forward are orders of magnitude lower than adhesion-based motility and the force distribution on the substrate differs dramatically. This fundamentally different mode of force transduction may have fundamental implications for cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions during migration in vivo.

Host: Dr. Guillaume Charras (g.charras@ucl.ac.uk)