Is the mechanical activity of epithelial cells controlled by deformations or forces

摘要: The traction forces developed by cells depend strongly on the substrate rigidity. In this letter, we characterize quantitatively effect MDCK epithelial using a microfabricated force sensor consisting in high-density array of soft pillars whose stiffness can be tailored changing their height and radius to obtain rigidity range from 2 nN/μm up 130 nN/μm. We find that exerted are proportional spring constant meaning that, average, deform same amount whatever relevant parameter may thus deformation rather than force. These dynamic observations correlated with reinforcement focal adhesions increases