Single-cell mechanics provides a sensitive and quantitative means for probing amyloid-beta peptide and neuronal cell interactions.

By using a highly sensitive technique of atomic force microscopy-based single-cell compression, the rigidity of cultured N2a and HT22 neuronal cells was measured as a function of amyloid-beta42 (Abeta42) protein treatment. Abeta42 oligomers led to significant cellular stiffening; for example, 90-360% higher force was required to reach 80% deformation for N2a cells. Disaggregated or fibrillar forms of Abeta42 showed much less change. These observations were explained by a combination of two factors: (i) incorporation of oligomer into cellular membrane, which resulted in an increase in the Young's modulus of the membrane from 0.9+/-0.4 to 1.85+/-0.75 MPa for N2a cells and from 1.73+/-0.90 to 5.5+/-1.4 MPa for HT22 cells, and (ii) an increase in intracellular osmotic pressure (e.g., from 7 to 40 Pa for N2a cells) through unregulated ion influx. These findings and measurements provide a deeper, more characteristic, and quantitative insight into interactions between cells and Abeta42 oligomers, which have been considered the prime suspect for initiating neuronal dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease.

Frictionless sliding of single-stranded DNA in a carbon nanotube pore observed by single molecule force spectroscopy.

Smooth inner pores of carbon nanotubes (CNT) provide a fascinating model for studying biological transport. We used an atomic force microscope to pull a single-stranded DNA oligomer from a carbon nanotube pore. DNA extraction from CNT pores occurs at a nearly constant force, which is drastically different from the elastic profile commonly observed during polymer stretching with atomic force microscopy. We show that a combination of the frictionless nanotube pore walls and an unfavorable DNA solvation energy produces this constant force profiles.

Cell tracing dyes significantly change single cell mechanics.

Cell tracing dyes are very frequently utilized in cellular biology research because they provide highly sensitive fluorescent tags that do not compromise cellular functions such as growth and proliferation. In many investigations concerning cellular adhesion and mechanics, fluorescent dyes have been employed with the assumption of little impact on the results. Using the single cell compression technique developed by our team, the single cell mechanics of MDA-MB-468 and MLC-SV40 cells were investigated as a function of dye uptake. Cell tracing dyes increase living cell stiffness 3-6 times and cell-to-probe adhesion up to 7 times. These results suggest a more significant effect than toxins, such as thrombin. A simple analytical model was derived to enable the extraction of the Young's moduli of the cell membrane and cytoskeleton from the force-deformation profiles measured for individual cells. The increase in Young's modulus of the membrane is 3-7 times, which is more significant than that of the cytoskeleton (1.1-3.4 times). We propose that changes in cell mechanics upon the addition of fluorescent tracing dye are primarily due to the incorporation of amphiphilic dye molecules into the cellular plasma membrane, which increases the lateral interaction among phospholipid chains and thus enhances their rigidity and adhesion.

Water-assisted growth of uniform 100 mm diameter SWCNT arrays.

We report a simple method for growing high-quality single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) arrays on 100 mm wafers via the addition of water vapor to highly purified gases during the CNT growth step. We show that adding a small amount of water during growth helps to create a uniform catalyst distribution and yields high-quality (Raman G/D of 26 ± 3), high-density (up to 6 × 10(11) cm(-2)) and uniform SWCNT arrays on 100 mm large wafers. We rationalize our finding by suggesting that the addition of water decreases catalyst mobility, preventing its coarsening at higher temperatures. We also report a new mechanism of catalyst inactivation in wafer-scale growth using ultrapurified gas sources by the formation of large, 5 ± 3 µm iron particles. We found such formations to be common for substrates with large temperature gradients, such as for wafers processed in a typical cold-wall chemical vapor deposition reactor.

Single cell mechanics of keratinocyte cells.

Keratinocytes represent the major cell type of the uppermost layer of human skin, the epidermis. Using AFM-based single cell compression, the ability of individual keratinocytes to resist external pressure and global rupturing forces is investigated and compared with various cell types. Keratinocytes are found to be 6-70 times stiffer than other cell types, such as white blood, breast epithelial, fibroblast, or neuronal cells, and in contrast to other cell types they retain high mechanic strength even after the cell's death. The absence of membrane rupturing peaks in the force-deformation profiles of keratinocytes and their high stiffness during a second load cycle suggests that their unique mechanical resistance is dictated by the cytoskeleton. A simple analytical model enables the quantification of Young's modulus of keratinocyte cytoskeleton, as high as 120-340 Pa. Selective disruption of the two major cytoskeletal networks, actin filaments and microtubules, does not significantly affect keratinocyte mechanics. F-actin is found to impact cell deformation under pressure. During keratinocyte compression, the plasma membrane stretches to form peripheral blebs. Instead of blebbing, cells with depolymerized F-actin respond to pressure by detaching the plasma membrane from the cytoskeleton underneath. On the other hand, the compression force of keratinocytes expressing a mutated keratin (cell line, KEB-7) is 1.6-2.2 times less than that for the control cell line that has normal keratin networks. Therefore, we infer that the keratin intermediate filament network is responsible for the extremely high keratinocyte stiffness and resilience. This could manifest into the rugged protective nature of the human epidermis.

Applications of atomic force microscopy in biophysical chemistry of cells.

This article addresses the question of what information and new insights atomic force microscopy (AFM) provides that are of importance and relevance to cellular biophysical chemistry research. Three enabling aspects of AFM are discussed: (a) visualization of membrane structural features with nanometer resolution, such as microvilli, ridges, porosomes, lamellapodia, and filopodia; (b) revealing structural evolution associated with cellular signaling pathways by time-dependent and high-resolution imaging of the cellular membrane in correlation with intracellular components from simultaneous optical microscopy; and (c) qualitative and quantitative measurements of single cell mechanics by acquisition of force-deformation profiles and extraction of Young's moduli for the membrane as well as cytoskeleton. A future prospective of AFM is also presented.

Cell mechanics using atomic force microscopy-based single-cell compression.

We report herein the establishment of a single-cell compression method based on force measurements in atomic force microscopy (AFM). The high-resolution bright-field or confocal laser scanning microscopy guides the location of the AFM probe and then monitors the deformation of cell shape, while microsphere-modified AFM probes compress the cell and measure the force. Force and deformation profiles of living cells reveal a cubic relationship at small deformation (<30%), multiple peaks at 30-70% compression, and a rapid increase at over 80% deformation. The initial compression may be described qualitatively and quantitatively using a simple model of a nonpermeable balloon filled with incompressible fluid. Stress peaks reflect cell membrane rupture, followed by the deformation and rupture of intracellular components, beyond which the cell responses become irreversible. The Young's modulus and bending constant of living cell membranes are extracted from the balloon models, with 10-30 MPa and 17-52 kT, respectively. The initial compression of dead and fixed cells is modeled using Hertzian contact theory, assuming that the cell is a homogeneous sphere. Dead cells exhibit a cytoskeleton elasticity of 4-7.5 kPa, while fixation treatment leads to a dramatic increase in the cytoskeletal Young's modulus (150-230 kPa) due to protein cross-linking by imine bonds. These results demonstrate the high sensitivity of the single-cell compression method to the molecular-level structural changes of cells, which suggests a new generic platform for investigating cell mechanics in tissue engineering and cancer research.

Effect of pH and salt on the stiffness of polyelectrolyte multilayer microcapsules.

By using a combination of atomic force and confocal microscopy, we explore the effect of pH and salt on the stiffness of polyelectrolyte microcapsules with shells composed of strong polyanions and weak polycations. The stiffness of the capsules was found to be largest in water. It decreases slightly with added salt and gets much smaller both in acidic and in alkaline solutions. The moderate softening of the capsules in electrolyte solutions indicates that even high salt concentration does not significantly dissociate polyelectrolytes in the multilayer. The dramatic softening of the capsules at high pH probably reflects a decrease in the charge density of a polycation, which leads to a reduction in the number of ionic cross-links. In contrast, low stiffness of the capsules in acidic solutions seems to be connected mostly with the enhanced permeability of the multilayer shell.

Elasticity of polyelectrolyte multilayer microcapsules.

We present a novel approach to probe elastic properties of polyelectrolyte multilayer microcapsules. The method is based on measurements of the capsule load-deformation curves with the atomic force microscope. The experiment suggests that at low applied load deformations of the capsule shell are elastic. Using elastic theory of membranes we relate force, deformation, elastic moduli, and characteristic sizes of the capsule. Fitting to the prediction of the model yields the lower limit for Young's modulus of the polyelectrolyte multilayers of the order of 1-100 MPa, depending on the template and solvent used for its dissolution. These values correspond to Young's modulus of an elastomer.