Letter abstract
Nature Physics 5, 426 - 430 (2009)
Published online: 3 May 2009 | doi:10.1038/nphys1269
Subject Category: Biological physics
Physical forces during collective cell migration
Xavier Trepat1,2, Michael R. Wasserman1, Thomas E. Angelini3, Emil Millet1, David A. Weitz3, James P. Butler1,4 & Jeffrey J. Fredberg1
Fundamental biological processes including morphogenesis, tissue repair and tumour metastasis require collective cell motions1, 2, 3, and to drive these motions cells exert traction forces on their surroundings4. Current understanding emphasizes that these traction forces arise mainly in 'leader cells' at the front edge of the advancing cell sheet5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Our data are contrary to that assumption and show for the first time by direct measurement that traction forces driving collective cell migration arise predominately many cell rows behind the leading front edge and extend across enormous distances. Traction fluctuations are anomalous, moreover, exhibiting broad non-Gaussian distributions characterized by exponential tails10, 11, 12. Taken together, these unexpected findings demonstrate that although the leader cell may have a pivotal role in local cell guidance, physical forces that it generates are but a small part of a global tug-of-war involving cells well back from the leading edge.
- Program in Molecular and Integrative Physiological Sciences, School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
- Unitat de Biofísica i Bioenginyeria, Universitat de Barcelona, Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia, and Ciber Enfermedades Respiratorias, 08036 Barcelona, Spain
- School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
- Dept. Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
Correspondence to: Xavier Trepat1,2 e-mail: xtrepat@ub.edu
Correspondence to: Jeffrey J. Fredberg1 e-mail: jeffrey_fredberg@hsph.harvard.edu
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