Cells as liquid motors: mechanosensitivity emerges from collective dynamics of actomyosin cortex.

Living cells adapt and respond actively to the mechanical properties of their environment. In addition to biochemical mechanotransduction, evidence exists for a myosin-dependent purely mechanical sensitivity to the stiffness of the surroundings at the scale of the whole cell. Using a minimal model of the dynamics of actomyosin cortex, we show that the interplay of myosin power strokes with the rapidly remodeling actin network results in a regulation of force and cell shape that adapts to the stiffness of the environment. Instantaneous changes of the environment stiffness are found to trigger an intrinsic mechanical response of the actomyosin cortex. Cortical retrograde flow resulting from actin polymerization at the edges is shown to be modulated by the stress resulting from myosin contractility, which in turn, regulates the cell length in a force-dependent manner. The model describes the maximum force that cells can exert and the maximum speed at which they can contract, which are measured experimentally. These limiting cases are found to be associated with energy dissipation phenomena, which are of the same nature as those taking place during the contraction of a whole muscle. This similarity explains the fact that single nonmuscle cell and whole-muscle contraction both follow a Hill-like force-velocity relationship.

Three-dimensional cell body shape dictates the onset of traction force generation and growth of focal adhesions.

Cell shape affects proliferation and differentiation, which are processes known to depend on integrin-based focal adhesion (FA) signaling. Because shape results from force balance and FAs are mechanosensitive complexes transmitting tension from the cell structure to its mechanical environment, we investigated the interplay between 3D cell shape, traction forces generated through the cell body, and FA growth during early spreading. Combining measurements of cell-scale normal traction forces with FA monitoring, we show that the cell body contact angle controls the onset of force generation and, subsequently, the initiation of FA growth at the leading edge of the lamella. This suggests that, when the cell body switches from convex to concave, tension in the apical cortex is transmitted to the lamella where force-sensitive FAs start to grow. Along this line, increasing the stiffness resisting cell body contraction led to a decrease of the lag time between force generation and FA growth, indicating mechanical continuity of the cell structure and force transmission from the cell body to the leading edge. Remarkably, the overall normal force per unit area of FA increased with stiffness, and its values were similar to those reported for local tangential forces acting on individual FAs. These results reveal how the 3D cell shape feeds back on its internal organization and how it may control cell fate through FA-based signaling.

Human Primary Immune Cells Exhibit Distinct Mechanical Properties that Are Modified by Inflammation.

T lymphocytes are key modulators of the immune response. Their activation requires cell-cell interaction with different myeloid cell populations of the immune system called antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Although T lymphocytes have recently been shown to respond to mechanical cues, in particular to the stiffness of their environment, little is known about the rigidity of APCs. In this study, single-cell microplate assays were performed to measure the viscoelastic moduli of different human myeloid primary APCs, i.e., monocytes (Ms, storage modulus of 520 +90/-80 Pa), dendritic cells (DCs, 440 +110/-90 Pa), and macrophages (MPHs, 900 +110/-100 Pa). Inflammatory conditions modulated these properties, with storage moduli ranging from 190 Pa to 1450 Pa. The effect of inflammation on the mechanical properties was independent of the induction of expression of commonly used APC maturation markers, making myeloid APC rigidity an additional feature of inflammation. In addition, the rigidity of human T lymphocytes was lower than that of all myeloid cells tested and among the lowest reported (Young's modulus of 85 ± 5 Pa). Finally, the viscoelastic properties of myeloid cells were dependent on both their filamentous actin content and myosin IIA activity, although the relative contribution of these parameters varied within cell types. These results indicate that T lymphocytes face different cell rigidities when interacting with myeloid APCs in vivo and that this mechanical landscape changes under inflammation.

Different TCR-induced T lymphocyte responses are potentiated by stiffness with variable sensitivity.

T cells are mechanosensitive but the effect of stiffness on their functions is still debated. We characterize herein how human primary CD4+ T cell functions are affected by stiffness within the physiological Young's modulus range of 0.5 kPa to 100 kPa. Stiffness modulates T lymphocyte migration and morphological changes induced by TCR/CD3 triggering. Stiffness also increases TCR-induced immune system, metabolism and cell-cycle-related genes. Yet, upon TCR/CD3 stimulation, while cytokine production increases within a wide range of stiffness, from hundreds of Pa to hundreds of kPa, T cell metabolic properties and cell cycle progression are only increased by the highest stiffness tested (100 kPa). Finally, mechanical properties of adherent antigen-presenting cells modulate cytokine production by T cells. Together, these results reveal that T cells discriminate between the wide range of stiffness values found in the body and adapt their responses accordingly.

Single-cell mechanics: the parallel plates technique.

We describe here the parallel plates technique which enables quantifying single-cell mechanics, either passive (cell deformability) or active (whole-cell traction forces). Based on the bending of glass microplates of calibrated stiffness, it is easy to implement on any microscope, and benefits from protocols and equipment already used in biology labs (coating of glass slides, pipette pullers, micromanipulators, etc.). We first present the principle of the technique, the design and calibration of the microplates, and various surface coatings corresponding to different cell-substrate interactions. Then we detail the specific cell preparation for the assays, and the different mechanical assays that can be carried out. Finally, we discuss the possible technical simplifications and the specificities of each mechanical protocol, as well as the possibility of extending the use of the parallel plates to investigate the mechanics of cell aggregates or tissues.