Correlation of plasma membrane microviscosity and cell stiffness revealed via fluorescence-lifetime imaging and atomic force microscopy
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Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The biophysical properties of cells described at the level of whole cells or their membranes have many consequences for their biological behavior. However, our understanding of the relationships between mechanical parameters at the level of cell (stiffness, viscoelasticity) and at the level of the plasma membrane (fluidity) remains quite limited, especially in the context of pathologies, such as cancer. Here, we investigated the correlations between cells’ stiffness and viscoelastic parameters, mainly determined via the actin cortex, and plasma membrane microviscosity, mainly determined via its lipid profile, in cancer cells, as these are the keys to their migratory capacity. The mechanical properties of cells were assessed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The microviscosity of membranes was visualized using fluorescence-lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) with the viscosity-sensitive probe BODIPY 2. Measurements were performed for five human colorectal cancer cell lines that have different migratory activity (HT29, Caco-2, HCT116, SW 837, and SW 480) and their chemoresistant counterparts. The actin cytoskeleton and the membrane lipid composition were also analyzed to verify the results. The cell stiffness (Young’s modulus), measured via AFM, correlated well (Pearson r = 0.93) with membrane microviscosity, measured via FLIM, and both metrics were elevated in more motile cells. The associations between stiffness and microviscosity were preserved upon acquisition of chemoresistance to one of two chemotherapeutic drugs. These data clearly indicate that mechanical parameters, determined by two different cellular structures, are interconnected in cells and play a role in their intrinsic migratory potential.
Date Issued
2023-11
Date Acceptance
2023-10-31
Citation
Cells, 2023, 12 (21)
ISSN
2073-4409
Publisher
MDPI AG
Journal / Book Title
Cells
Volume
12
Issue
21
Copyright Statement
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Identifier
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/12/21/2583
Subjects
ACTIN CORTEX
actin cytoskeleton
atomic force microscopy (AFM)
cancer cell
CANCER-CELLS
Cell Biology
CHOLESTEROL
CYTOSKELETON
E-CADHERIN
ELASTICITY
FLUIDITY
fluorescence-lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM)
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
MECHANICAL-PROPERTIES
METASTASIS
microviscosity
molecular rotors
PHENOTYPE
plasma membrane
Science & Technology
time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS)
viscoelasticity
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
2583
Date Publish Online
2023-11-06