Mechanical mismatch between Ras transformed and untransformed epithelial cells

Corinne Gullekson, Gheorghe Cojoc, Mirjam Schuermann, Jochen Guck, Andrew Pelling

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The organization of the actin cytoskeleton plays a key role in regulating cell mechanics. It is fundamentally altered during transformation, affecting how cells interact with their environment. We investigated mechanical properties of cells expressing constitutively active, oncogenic Ras (Ras(V12)) in adherent and suspended states. To do this, we utilized atomic force microscopy and a microfluidic optical stretcher. We found that adherent cells stiffen and suspended cells soften with the expression of constitutively active Ras. The effect on adherent cells was reversed when contractility was inhibited with the ROCK inhibitor Y-27632, resulting in softer Ras(V12) cells. Our findings suggest that increased ROCK activity as a result of Ras has opposite effects on suspended and adhered cells. Our results also establish the importance of the activation of ROCK by Ras and its effect on cell mechanics.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)8483-8491
Number of pages9
JournalSoft Matter
Volume13
Issue number45
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 7 Dec 2017

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