Vibrational signatures of living cells

The ability of cells to transmit mechanical cues between themselves through the extracellular matrix (ECM) has been recently recognized as a mechanism of long-range cell-cell communication, with implications in a variety of physiological and disease states. Previous works have focused on quasi-static forces (variations over minutes to hours), whose transduction drives cells to remodel both themselves and the ECM. However, cells can sense and respond to rapid forces in the form of vibrations (e.g., time-dependent at higher frequencies, much faster than the characteristic time of ECM homeostatic remodeling or turnover). Whether cells themselves transfer information to neighboring cells via vibrational waves in the ECM is yet unknown. We hypothesize that vibrations, primarily delivered by longitudinal waves along remodeled (stretched, oriented and tensed) collagen tracks, affect signaling cascades associated with both healing and the onset of fibrosis through information transfer between fibroblasts. Our international team of experts in vibrational animal communication, vibration modeling, in vitro cellular systems, and mechanobiology will explore the propagation of dynamic cues through collagen-based materials and establish whether cells generate, transfer and sense information via transient waves. Manipulation of these mechanical cues may possibly be harnessed to accelerate wound healing and impede fibrosis.

Vibrational signatures of living cells Articles