Quantifying traction stresses in adherent cells
- PMID: 22482948
- DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-388403-9.00006-0
Quantifying traction stresses in adherent cells
Abstract
Contractile force generation plays a critical role in cell adhesion, migration, and extracellular matrix reorganization in both 2D and 3D environments. Characterization of cellular forces has led to a greater understanding of cell migration, cellular mechanosensing, tissue formation, and disease progression. Methods to characterize cellular traction stresses now date back over 30 years, and they have matured from qualitative comparisons of cell-mediated substrate movements to high-resolution, highly quantitative measures of cellular force. Here, we will provide an overview of common methods used to measure forces in both 2D and 3D microenvironments. Specific focus will be placed on traction force microscopy, which measures the force exerted by cells on 2D planar substrates, and the use of confocal reflectance microscopy, which can be used to quantify collagen fibril compaction as a metric for 3D traction forces. In addition to providing experimental methods to analyze cellular forces, we discuss the application of these techniques to a large range of biomedical problems and some of the significant challenges that still remain in this field.
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
Mechanotransduction of mesenchymal melanoma cell invasion into 3D collagen lattices: filopod-mediated extension-relaxation cycles and force anisotropy.Exp Cell Res. 2013 Oct 1;319(16):2424-33. doi: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2013.04.003. Epub 2013 Jul 2. Exp Cell Res. 2013. PMID: 23830878
-
Finite element analysis of traction force microscopy: influence of cell mechanics, adhesion, and morphology.J Biomech Eng. 2013 Jul 1;135(7):71009. doi: 10.1115/1.4024467. J Biomech Eng. 2013. PMID: 23720059 Free PMC article.
-
Beta 1 integrin binding plays a role in the constant traction force generation in response to varying stiffness for cells grown on mature cardiac extracellular matrix.Exp Cell Res. 2015 Jan 15;330(2):311-324. doi: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2014.09.007. Epub 2014 Sep 16. Exp Cell Res. 2015. PMID: 25220424
-
Mechanobiology in the third dimension.Ann Biomed Eng. 2005 Nov;33(11):1469-90. doi: 10.1007/s10439-005-8159-4. Ann Biomed Eng. 2005. PMID: 16341917 Review.
-
Traction force microscopy for understanding cellular mechanotransduction.BMB Rep. 2020 Feb;53(2):74-81. doi: 10.5483/BMBRep.2020.53.2.308. BMB Rep. 2020. PMID: 31964473 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Imaging methods in mechanosensing: a historical perspective and visions for the future.Mol Biol Cell. 2021 Apr 19;32(9):842-854. doi: 10.1091/mbc.E20-10-0671. Epub 2021 Mar 31. Mol Biol Cell. 2021. PMID: 33788578 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Microfabricated Systems and Assays for Studying the Cytoskeletal Organization, Micromechanics, and Motility Patterns of Cancerous Cells.Adv Mater Interfaces. 2014 Oct;1(7):1400158. doi: 10.1002/admi.201400158. Epub 2014 Aug 28. Adv Mater Interfaces. 2014. PMID: 26900544 Free PMC article.
-
Optical measurement of arterial mechanical properties: from atherosclerotic plaque initiation to rupture.J Biomed Opt. 2013 Dec;18(12):121507. doi: 10.1117/1.JBO.18.12.121507. J Biomed Opt. 2013. PMID: 24296995 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Dynamic peripheral traction forces balance stable neurite tension in regenerating Aplysia bag cell neurons.Sci Rep. 2014 May 14;4:4961. doi: 10.1038/srep04961. Sci Rep. 2014. PMID: 24825441 Free PMC article.
-
Traction Force Microscopy for Noninvasive Imaging of Cell Forces.Adv Exp Med Biol. 2018;1092:319-349. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-95294-9_15. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2018. PMID: 30368759 Free PMC article. Review.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
