Altered mechanical properties of actin fibers due to breast cancer invasion: parameter identification based on micropipette aspiration and multiscale tensegrity modeling

This study highlights the function of cytoskeletal fibers in cancer progression, which could be of interest in designing therapeutic strategies to target cancer progress.Graphical abstractFirstly, the viscoelastic behavior of non-invasive and invasive cells is examined with micropipette aspiration tests. A tensegrity model of cells is developed to mimic the viscoelastic behavior of cells, and tensegrity element stiffness is evaluated in an optimization procedure based on micropipette aspiration tests. Finally, by using immunofluorescent staining and confocal imaging, mechanical properties of actin filaments and microtubules of cancer cells are investigated during the course of metastasis.
Source: Medical and Biological Engineering and Computing - Category: Biomedical Engineering Source Type: research