This work was supported by National Institutes of Health grant R35 GM118177 to PND.

<ol>
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The authors have nothing to disclose.

The methods described here offer a convenient way to assess both population and individual cell behavior in response to shear flow. Importantly, while previous studies analyzed localization of leading and lagging edge markers during migration, the current approach allows investigation of immediate effects by applying the shear flow acutely. Using this method we demonstrated that, in fact, the initial response of cells to shear flow does not require cell migration. Instead, the rapid and transient response to the initial shear flow stimulus precedes the directional migration seen with prolonged exposure to shear flow, similarly to the initial global response seen with a chemoattractant gradient.
The biochemical and microscopic approaches yield complementary data even though each method has distinct advantages and disadvantages. Stimulation followed by cell lysis and immunoblotting of PKBs, KrsB, and ERK, for example, analyzes an entire population of cells and thus averages cell-to-cell variation, unlike an assay that examines individual cell behavior. However, population-based assays tend to mask subtle changes in cell behavior that can be easily observed by analyzing individual cells. Additionally, the biochemical assay described here is only effective with aggregation-competent cells, for reasons that will be discussed later. In contrast, the microscopy-based assay of the relocalization of RBD, RalGDS, PH-Crac, LimE&#916;coil, and PTEN, for example, between the cortex and cytosol is effective for both vegetative and aggregation-competent cells, and thus allows for observations that are broadly applicable to cells with varying degrees of polarization. What makes the two approaches complementary is the fact that they examine different sets of available leading/lagging edge markers, thus expanding the coverage of the signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks tested with the shear flow assay.
It remains unclear why vegetative cells, which respond very robustly in microscopy-based assays, do not respond to stimulation followed by cell lysis and immunoblotting. One possibility is that the amount of shear force applied to cells when the plate is rotated does not match the force experienced by the cells in a flow chamber. Developed cells, in contrast, might have a lower threshold for activation, and, thus, respond under either condition. It is unlikely that the biosensors whose activity is measured by the biochemical assay are not expressed or are not activated in vegetative cells, since stimulation of vegetative cells with folic acid leads to robust activation of both PKBR1/PKBA and ERK2 (data not shown). Moreover, vegetative cells show clear recruitment of PH-Crac, which reflects PIP3 accumulation, in the microscopy-based assay. Since PKBA recruitment also depends on PIP3, it seems unlikely that PKBA would not respond to acute mechanical stimulation, unless the conditions in the biochemical assay are not optimal as mentioned above. This remains an area of active investigation.
The biochemical analysis of chemotaxis regulators required the presence of caffeine throughout the experiment. Originally caffeine was added to prevent cell to cell signaling due to secretion of cAMP. However, it appears that caffeine has another role besides inhibition of adenylyl cyclase (ACA) since ACA-null cells still required caffeine for phosphorylation of PKBR1 in response to acute mechanical stimulation. Caffeine has been previously shown to block TorC2 activity26. It is possible that inhibition of TorC2 blocked some basal motility of the cells, and thus lowered the basal activation of PKBR1 and other components of signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks. Low basal activity was imperative for observing the response to shear flow. In fact, when cells were collected at earlier time points during development, they displayed increased basal activity and a reduced shear-flow induced response. Interestingly, it is known that vegetative cells have proportionally more PKBA activity and less PKBR1 compared to developed cells31. It is possible that the basal state is regulated somewhat differently in vegetative and aggregation-competent cells, further contributing to the lack of a response of vegetative cells in the biochemical assay. Curiously, when cells were collected at later points of development, they also had a reduced response, likely due to the strong influence of polarity on the localization and activation of various chemotaxis regulators examined in this assay.
Stimulation of cells in a microscopy chamber revealed that both the strength and the duration of stimulus contribute to maximal response22. In other words, a maximal response can be achieved even with a low shear force if it is applied for a prolonged period of time (10 s versus 2 s). This observation explains why cells have an initial global response when they are first exposed to a continuous, but weak, stimulus that leads to shear flow-induced migration. With the current apparatus, we were unable to generate low enough shear flow to investigate the lower end of the range.
Perhaps, the most important implication of the studies conducted using acute mechanical stimulation is that both mechanical and chemical stimuli appear to feed into common signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks. Although we showed that the two stimuli integrate using bulk buffer addition for the mechanical stimulation, future studies will aim to develop a system where chemoattractant can be delivered rapidly in the flow-through channel, which would be a much more versatile and powerful way to assess integration of mechanical and chemical stimuli. Unfortunately, chemoattractant addition using the current two-line setup is associated with a second shear flow stimulus because the chemoattractant has to be delivered in the presence of flow. A viable alternative may be laser-stimulated release of a chemoattractant from a caged precursor as was successfully shown for cAMP by Westendorf et al.32. In the future, it would also be interesting to examine integration of other stimuli, for example, shear flow and variable electric fields, or shear flow and variable substrate stiffness. The latter example is interesting because it involves two types of mechanical stimulation, although the initial signal reception might differ between them. Confirming that all stimuli that induce directed migration share the same signal transduction network and vary only in how the stimulus is perceived will explain how cells can navigate in complex environments. Finally, we already demonstrated that acute stimulation with shear flow leads to spreading of human neutrophil-like cells22. Future work will further examine localization and activation of various components of the signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks with mechanical stimuli in mammalian cells.

Migration of eukaryotic cells is biased by diverse chemical and physical cues in the environment, including gradients of soluble or substrate-bound chemoattractants, variable stiffness of the substrates, electric fields, or shear flow. Although there have been many advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms driving chemotaxis, less is known about other types of directed migration and how these diverse signals are integrated at the cellular level to produce a unified migratory response.
Directed migration toward an increasing concentration of a chemoattractant involves three behavioral components: motility, directional sensing, and polarity1. Motility refers to random movement of cells achieved by pseudopod protrusion. Directional sensing is the ability of a cell to detect the source of a chemoattractant, which can occur even in immobilized cells. Polarity refers to the more stable asymmetrical distribution of intracellular components between the leading and lagging edge of a cell, which leads to increased persistence in movement.
Cellular response to a chemoattractant depends on the activity of four conceptually defined regulatory networks: receptor/ G protein, signal transduction, actin cytoskeleton, and polarity1. Chemoattractant binding to the G protein-coupled receptor transmits the signal via heterotrimeric G proteins &#945; and &#946;&#947; to the downstream signal transduction network, which amplifies the directional signal. Multiple pathways within the signal transduction network act in parallel and feed into the actin cytoskeleton network to bias actin polymerization, and consequent pseudopod protrusion, in the direction of the gradient. Among important regulators of chemotaxis are Ras GTPase, TorC2, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN), and guanylyl cyclase. Feedback mechanisms within the signal transduction network and between the signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks further amplify the response. Finally, the poorly defined polarity network receives input from the actin cytoskeleton, and further biases the signal transduction network to promote persistent migration in the direction of the gradient.
Much of our mechanistic understanding of chemotaxis was made possible because of the development of fluorescently-tagged biosensors for various components of the regulatory networks. Many chemotaxis regulators have an asymmetrical distribution either of the regulatory molecule itself or its activity. For example, biosensors that recognize activated versions of small GTPases Ras and Rap1 &#8211; Ras-binding domains of Raf1 (referred to as RBD here) and RalGDS, respectively &#8211; localize to the leading edge of a chemotaxing cell2,3. Similarly, PI3K and its product phosphatidylinositol (3,4,5)-trisphosphate (PIP3), recognized by a pleckstrin homology (PH) domain, also show localization at the front of a cell4,5. In contrast, a 3-phosphatase PTEN, which converts PIP3 back to phosphatidylinositol (4,5)-bisphosphate, localizes to the lagging edge of the cell6. Importantly, these biosensors change their localization in response to global stimulation with a chemoattractant. Leading edge markers, which are cytosolic or on the tips of protrusions in a resting cell, relocalize to the cortex, whereas lagging edge markers, which have cortical localization and are absent from the tips of protrusions in a resting cell, become cytosolic after stimulation. Analysis of biosensor distribution in response to global stimulation with a chemoattractant minimizes the contribution of motility and polarity, which often confound the observations. Global or uniform stimulation of a cell suspension with a chemoattractant is also used as a tool to assess population-wide changes in protein activation, often detected by protein phosphorylation7,8,9. This biochemical assay is primarily used to obtain temporal information, whereas microscopy is used to gather both temporal and spatial information about the behavior of various components of the regulatory networks.
The signal transduction network incorporates features of an excitable system10,11. Responses to supra-threshold chemotactic stimuli are &#34;all-or-none&#34; and display refractory periods. Responses are also triggered stochastically and can show oscillatory behavior. Signal transduction events are localized to regions of the cortex that propagate as waves12,13,14,15. Front, or back, markers are recruited to, or dissociate from, the active zones of the propagating waves. Due to the refractory region trailing the active zone, the oppositely directed waves annihilate as they meet. The propagating signal transduction waves underlie the cellular protrusions that mediate cell migration10.
Much of the aforementioned information on chemotaxis came from the studies on the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, although similar regulatory mechanisms are also applicable to neutrophils and other mammalian cell types16. Dictyostelium is a well-established model organism that has a robust chemotactic response during starvation, when thousands of single cells migrate toward an aggregation center, eventually forming a multicellular fruiting body containing spores. Chemotaxis is also essential during the single-cell growth stage of this organism for locating bacterial food sources. Importantly, migration of single Dictyostelium cells is remarkably similar to the migration of mammalian neutrophils or metastatic cancer cells, all of which undergo very rapid amoeboid-type migration. In fact, both the overall topology of the regulatory networks, as well as many of the individual signal transduction pathways involved in chemotaxis are conserved between Dictyostelium and mammalian leukocytes17. Furthermore, other cells, such as fibroblasts, use receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK) instead of GPCRs; however, RTKs may feed into similar networks.
In contrast to chemotaxis, thorough understanding of the signaling mechanisms that drive various other modes of directed migration is lacking. Similarly to cells migrating in a chemoattractant gradient several studies have reported activation and/or localization of typical leading edge markers, including actin polymerization, PIP3 and/or extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2, at the front of cells undergoing directed migration in response to shear flow or changes in electric fields18,19,20,21. However, in these studies continuous exposure to the stimulus also resulted in cell migration, leaving open the question whether, for example, the leading edge markers localize specifically in response to a stimulus, or if they simply localize at the leading edge because of increased number of pseudopods at the front of a migrating cell.
We developed assays that allow us to observe the response of cells to acute mechanical perturbation delivered as shear flow both at the population level and as individual cells22. Similar to global stimulation with a chemoattractant, acute stimulation with shear flow allows the study of a cellular response to a mechanical stimulus without the confounding contribution from motility or polarity. Combining these biochemical and microscopic assays with genetic or pharmacological perturbations allows us to learn about how mechanical stimuli are perceived and transmitted. Moreover, this approach also provides a novel method for tapping into the system downstream of the chemoattractant receptor in the absence of a chemoattractant, thereby isolating the signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks from the receptor/G protein network.
Using the techniques described below we recently demonstrated that acute shear stress leads to activation of multiple components of the chemotactic signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks22. By applying the acute mechanical stimulus at varying intervals, we demonstrated that, similarly to chemoattractants, response to mechanical stimuli also exhibits features of an excitable system, including the all-or-none behavior of the response under saturating conditions and the presence of a refractory period. Finally, by combining mechanical and chemical stimulation we showed that the two stimuli share signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks, which likely allow for integration of multiple stimuli to bias cell migration.

<table>
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Reagents</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Dextrose</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>D16-1</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media and SM plates (steps 1.1, 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Proteose peptone</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>DF0120-17-6</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media (step 1.1)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Yeast extract</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>50-550-445</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media and SM plates (steps 1.1, 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Na2HPO4&#183;7H2O</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>S373-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media, and 10X Phosphate Buffer (steps 1.1, 1.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>KH2PO4</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>P386-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media, SM plates, and 10X Phosphate Buffer (steps 1.1-1.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Streptomycin (dihydrostreptomycin sulfate)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>ICN10040525</td>
			<td>Use to prepare HL-5 media (step 1.1)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Peptone (Bacto)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>DF0118-17-0</td>
			<td>Use to prepare SM plates (step 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>K2HPO4</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>P288-100</td>
			<td>Use to prepare SM plates (step 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Agar</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>BP1423-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare SM plates (step 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MgSO4</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>M65-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare DB Buffer (step 1.4)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>CaCl2</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>C79-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare DB Buffer (step 1.4)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Caffeine</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>O1728-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare caffeine (step 1.5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>cAMP (EMD Millipore Calbiochem Adenosine 3 ft.,5 ft.-cyclic Monophosphate, Sodium Salt)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>11-680-1100MG</td>
			<td>Use to prepare cAMP (step 1.6)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Folic acid</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>F7876</td>
			<td>Use to prepare folic acid (step 1.7)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Tris base</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>BP152-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare 3X sample buffer (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>BP166-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare 3X sample buffer (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Glycerol</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>G33-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare 3X sample buffer (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Dithiothreitol (DTT)</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>1610610</td>
			<td>Use to prepare 3X sample buffer (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Bromophenol blue</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>1610404</td>
			<td>Use to prepare 3X sample buffer (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>NaF</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>S299-100</td>
			<td>Use to prepare sample buffer with protease and phosphatase inhibitors (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Na3VO4</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>50-994-911</td>
			<td>Use to prepare sample buffer with protease and phosphatase inhibitors (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sodium pyrophosphate decahydrate</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>S390-500</td>
			<td>Use to prepare sample buffer with protease and phosphatase inhibitors (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Complete EDTA-free protease inhibitor cocktail (Roche)</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>11873580001</td>
			<td>Use to prepare sample buffer with protease and phosphatase inhibitors (step 1.8)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Latrunculin A</td>
			<td>Enzo Life Sciences</td>
			<td>BML-T119-0100</td>
			<td>Use to prepare Latrunculin A (step 1.9)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>4-15% Tris-HCl polyacrylamide gel</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>3450029</td>
			<td>Use for immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Polyvinylidene fluoride membrane</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>1620177</td>
			<td>Use for immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Phospho-PKC (pan) (zeta Thr410) (190D10) Rabbit antibody</td>
			<td>Cell Signaling</td>
			<td>2060</td>
			<td>Primary antibody for use in immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Phospho-p44/42 MAPK (Erk1/2) (Thr202/Tyr204) (D13.14.4E) XP antibody</td>
			<td>Cell Signaling</td>
			<td>4370</td>
			<td>Primary antibody for use in immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Rabbit IgG HRP Linked Whole Ab (from Donkey)</td>
			<td>GE Healthcare</td>
			<td>NA934-100UL</td>
			<td>Secondary antibody for use in immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Enhanced chemiluminescence substrate (Clarity Western ECL Substrate)</td>
			<td>Bio-Rad</td>
			<td>1705060</td>
			<td>Use for immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Stripping buffer (Restore Plus Western blot stripping buffer)</td>
			<td>Pierce</td>
			<td>PI46430</td>
			<td>Use for immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Coomassie Brilliant Blue</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>PI20278</td>
			<td>Use for immunoblotting (step 3.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>K. aerogenes strain (non-pathogenic)</td>
			<td>Dicty Stock Center (dictybase.org)</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Name</td>
			<td>Company</td>
			<td>Catalog Number</td>
			<td>Comments</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Materials and Equipment</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Orbital shaker (model G-33, or a comparable alternative)</td>
			<td>New Brunswick Scientific</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Use to grow K. aerogenes (step 2.1.1), and to basalate and stimulate D. discoideum cells (step 3). The radius of gyration for this shaker is 9.5 mm.</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>10 cm Petri dish</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>FB0875712</td>
			<td>Use to prepare SM plates (step 1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Hemocytometer</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>02-671-51B</td>
			<td>Use to count D. discoideum cells (step 2.1.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>35 mm dish (Corning Falcon Easy-Grip Tissue Culture Dish)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>08-772A</td>
			<td>Use to plate D. discoideumcells for mechanical stimulation followed by cell lysis (step 3.1.1)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Polystyrene cup (5 mL)</td>
			<td>VWR</td>
			<td>13915-985</td>
			<td>Use to stimulate D. discoideum cell suspension with a chemoattractant (step 3.2.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Fluidic unit with pump (ibidi Pump System)</td>
			<td>Ibidi</td>
			<td>10902</td>
			<td>Use to deliver mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells in a channel (steps 4.1, 4.2, and 5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Slide with a channel (&#956;-Slide III 3in1 ibiTreat: #1.5 polymer coverslip, tissue culture treated, sterilized)</td>
			<td>Ibidi</td>
			<td>80316</td>
			<td>Use to plate D. discoideum cells for mechanical stimulation delivered by a fluidic device (steps 4.1, 4.2, and 5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>50 mL reservoirs (Ibidi Reservoir Holder for Fluidic Unit)</td>
			<td>Ibidi</td>
			<td>10978</td>
			<td>Use to setup the fluidic device for delivering mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells in a channel (steps 4.1, 4.2, and 5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Lines for the fluidic unit (Perfusion Set YELLOW-and-GREEN)</td>
			<td>Ibidi</td>
			<td>10964</td>
			<td>Use to setup the fluidic device for delivering mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells in a channel (steps 4.1, 4.2, and 5). Note: the two lines can also be cut from the 1.6 mm tubing (catalog number 10842).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Line for the drain (1.6 mm ID tubing)</td>
			<td>Ibidi</td>
			<td>10842</td>
			<td>Use to setup the fluidic device for delivering mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells in a channel (steps 4.1, 4.2, and 5).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Zeiss Observer.Z1 inverted microscope equipped with a 40X/1.3 oil objective and a 20X/0.3 air objective (or a comparable alternative)</td>
			<td>Zeiss</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>Used to image D. discoideum cells with phase-contrast or fluorescence illumination (steps 4 and 5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>UltraView spinning disk confocal microscope equipped with a 40&#215;/1.25&#8211;0.75 oil objective (or a comparable alternative)</td>
			<td>Perkin-Elmer</td>
			<td>DM 16000</td>
			<td>An alternative used to image D. discoideum cells (step 4.1.4)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>FemtoJet Microinjector (Eppendorf; model 5247, or a comparable alternative) with Eppendorf InjectMan</td>
			<td>Eppendorf</td>
			<td>5252000021D and 5192000027</td>
			<td>Use to deliver mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells by a micropipette (step 4.3). Note: catalog number are for the newest version of the equipment (4i).</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Micropipette (Femtotip; 1 &#956;m outside diameter, 0.5 &#956;m inside diameter )</td>
			<td>Eppendorf</td>
			<td>930000035</td>
			<td>Use to deliver mechanical stimulation to D. discoideum cells by a micropipette (step 4.3)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Microloader tips (Eppendorf Femtotips Microloader Tips for Femtojet Microinjector)</td>
			<td>Eppendorf</td>
			<td>5242956.003</td>
			<td>Use to fill the micropipette (femtotip) with buffer (step 4.3.1)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>1-well chamber (Thermo Scientific Nunc Lab-Tek Chambered Coverglass)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>12-565-472</td>
			<td>Use to plate D. discoideum cells for mechanical stimulation delivered by a micropipette (step 4.3.2)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>8-well chamber (Thermo Scientific Nunc Lab-Tek II Chambered Coverglass)</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>12-565-338</td>
			<td>Use to plate D. discoideum cells for mechanical stimulation delivered by bulk buffer addition (step 4.4.1)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Name</td>
			<td>Company</td>
			<td>Catalog Number</td>
			<td>Comments</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Software</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Image Analysis Software (Fiji)</td>
			<td>NIH</td>
			<td>https://fiji.sc/</td>
			<td>Use to quantify response to mechanical stimulation (step 4.5)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Migration analysis software (Tracking Tool PRO)</td>
			<td>Gradientech</td>
			<td>http://gradientech.se/tracking-tool-pro/</td>
			<td>Use to quantify cell speed and persistence (step 5.4)</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

assessment of dictyostelium discoideum response to acute mechanical stimulation

Chemotaxis, or migration up a gradient of a chemoattractant, is the best understood mode of directed migration. Studies using social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum revealed that a complex signal transduction network of parallel pathways amplifies the response to chemoattractants, and leads to biased actin polymerization and protrusion of a pseudopod in the direction of a gradient. In contrast, molecular mechanisms driving other types of directed migration, for example, due to exposure to shear flow or electric fields, are not known. Many regulators of chemotaxis exhibit localization at the leading or lagging edge of a migrating cell, as well as show transient changes in localization or activation following global stimulation with a chemoattractant. To understand the molecular mechanisms of other types of directed migration we developed a method that allows examination of cellular response to acute mechanical stimulation based on brief (2 - 5 s) exposure to shear flow. This stimulation can be delivered in a channel while imaging cells expressing fluorescently-labeled biosensors to examine individual cell behavior. Additionally, cell population can be stimulated in a plate, lysed, and immunoblotted using antibodies that recognize active versions of proteins of interest. By combining both assays, one can examine a wide array of molecules activated by changes in subcellular localization and/or phosphorylation. Using this method we determined that acute mechanical stimulation triggers activation of the chemotactic signal transduction and actin cytoskeleton networks. The ability to examine cellular responses to acute mechanical stimulation is important for understanding the initiating events necessary for shear flow-induced motility. This approach also provides a tool for studying the chemotactic signal transduction network without the confounding influence of the chemoattractant receptor.

Temporal response of chemotaxis regulators to acute mechanical stimulation
To assess the response of D. discoideum cells to mechanical stimulation, adherent aggregation-competent cells were exposed to a brief pulse of shear flow. Aggregation-competent D. discoideum cells secrete cAMP, which can be sensed by neighboring cells. To overcome the contribution of cell-cell signaling, cells were treated with caffeine, which inhibits adenylyl cyclase in D. discoideum and thus prevents cAMP secretion28. Indeed, cells pre-treated with caffeine had very low basal activity of PKBR1 and ERK2, and showed a robust increase in the phosphorylation of the key residues of these kinases following 5 s stimulation with shear flow (Figure 1A). The response was transient and peaked around 10-15 s for PKBR1, and around 30 s for ERK2, similarly to previously published findings for activation of these proteins with a chemoattractant7.
Although it is difficult to evaluate the efficiency of the response considering the low basal level, preliminary studies that led to the development of this assay, compared stimulation with shear flow alone (or with a vehicle) to shear flow in the presence of a chemoattractant cAMP (Figure 1B). This analysis did not show an increase in the response with the cAMP, suggesting that the response of the signal transduction network to shear flow is saturated. Although in this assay cAMP did not increase phosphorylation of PKBR1, cells&#39; response to chemoattractant can be observed using a standard stimulation protocol where aggregation-competent cells are kept in suspension, stimulated with cAMP, and lysed at various time points following stimulation. As shown in Figure 1C, under these conditions there is a transient increase in PKBR1 phosphorylation in response to chemoattractant, but not vehicle. The peak response is observed at 30 s in this assay because the temperature of the cell suspension during the assay is ~9 &#176;C, compared to ~22 &#176;C for mechanical stimulation assay described above26.
Spatiotemporal response of leading and lagging edge markers to acute mechanical stimulation
Since the population assay above only provides temporal information about the behavior of chemotaxis regulators, cells were also exposed to a brief mechanical stimulus while being observed with a microscope. This assay can be performed either with aggregation-competent or vegetative D. discoideum cells expressing various fluorescently-labeled biosensors whose localization was defined in cells stimulated with a chemoattractant. Two leading edge markers, PH domain of Crac and LimE&#916;coil, which are recruited by PIP3 or newly-polymerized actin, both showed mostly cytosolic localization in resting cells as previously reported (Figure 2A, Supplemental Movie 1)4,29. In cells that were basally active, these biosensors could also be seen on the tips of the pseudopods. Following stimulation with shear flow for 2 s, the biosensors rapidly relocalized to the cortex with a peak at ~6 to 10 s, and returned to the cytosol by ~30 s. In contrast, a lagging edge marker PTEN localized at the cortex before stimulation (Figure 2A). After a brief pulse with shear flow, cytosolic PTEN intensity increased, albeit with slower dynamics than for the leading edge biosensors. A change in biosensor localization from the cytosol to the cortex, and vice versa, is clearly seen as a change in the cytosolic intensity allowing for simple quantification of the response.
The observed behavior of the biosensors in response to acute mechanical stimulation is consistent with leading and lagging edge localization dynamics in response to stimulation with uniform chemoattractant. This behavior was not unique to the three biosensors shown. As previously published, similar changes in localization were also observed for leading edge markers RBD and RalGDS, which recognize activated Ras and Rap1, respectively, as well as for another lagging edge marker CynA22,30.
A similar assay can be used to assess the effects of various inhibitors by a simple modification of the experimental setup from a single input line to a double one. Using this method, the cells can be first exposed to control conditions, and then switched to the buffer that contains the desired test agent. For example, addition of actin-depolymerizing drug LatA blocked the response of RBD, as well as LimE&#916;coil, to acute mechanical stimulation (Figure 2B).
Global response precedes cell migration under prolonged stimulation with shear flow
The approach described here could also be adapted to study effects of shear flow on D. discoideum migration. In fact, if the flow was not shut off after 2 s but remained on for the duration of the experiment, vegetative cells showed directed migration against the flow (Figure 3, Supplemental Movie 2). It should be noted that the shear flow necessary to elicit a migratory response was lower than the pressure that was typically used to achieve a global response with acute stimulation in vegetative cells (for example, as seen in Figure 2B). However, even at the lower pressure, cells displayed a robust uniform response, as measured by a change in LimE&#916;coil localization, that preceded any change in the position of the cell itself. Thus, these experiments clearly showed that 1) the global response does not depend on the movement of the cell, and 2) the global response precedes directed migration.
Alternative approaches of testing response to acute mechanical stimulation
Although the use of a flow-through chamber has clear advantages for the study of the response to acute mechanical stimulation, we also validated two additional assays for testing the response of individual cells to acute mechanical stimulation. As shown in Figure 4, LimE&#916;coil rapidly and transiently re-localized from the cytosol to the cortex when cells were stimulated by bolus addition of buffer delivered either by a micropipette (Figure 4A) or manually using bulk buffer addition with a pipette (Figure 4B). It should be noted that a clear disadvantage of both of these assays is that the exact amount of shear force delivered to the cell is unknown, and cannot be easily varied. However, for situations where switching between mechanical and chemical stimuli is desired, bulk buffer addition offers a solid alternative to the stimulation in the flow device.
<img alt="Figure 1" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig1.jpg" /> 
&#160;
Figure 1: Representative results for biochemical assessment of the response of D. discoideum cells to acute mechanical or chemical stimulation. Aggregation-competent cells were exposed to mechanical or chemical stimuli, lysed at the indicated time points, and immunoblotted using antibodies that recognize phosphorylated PKBR1 or ERK2. (A) Adherent cells were stimulated on an orbital shaker for 5 s. The membrane was stained with Coomassie Brilliant Blue (CBB) to show equal protein loading. (B) Adherent cells were stimulated by manual movement of the plate in a cross-wise manner for approximately 5 s following chemical stimulation due to addition of 1 &#181;M cAMP or buffer (vehicle), or without any chemical stimulation (-). The two immunoblots show the extent of variation in the basal activation of PKBR1 seen at time 0. Occasionally, PKBA activation could also be detected by this technique, as shown in the lower panel. (C) Suspension cells were stimulated with 1 &#181;M cAMP or buffer (vehicle). Part (A) of this figure has been modified from Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig1large.jpg" target="_blank">Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.</a>
<img alt="Figure 2" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig2.jpg" /> 
Figure 2: Representative results for acute mechanical stimulation and live imaging of single cells on the microscope. (A) Aggregation-competent D. discoideum cells expressing RFP-tagged LimE&#916;coil, or GFP-tagged PH-Crac or PTEN were stimulated with unidirectional laminar flow at 15 dyn/cm2 for 2 to 5 s. Images were collected every 3 s. Representative cells showing translocation of the biosensors in response to mechanical stimulation are shown. Accumulation of each biosensor at the cortex was quantified as the inverse of the mean cytoplasmic intensity normalized for time 0. The average response of 18 (LimE&#916;coil), 20 (PH-Crac), or 6 (PTEN) cells is shown. Values are mean &#177; SE. (B) Vegetative cells expressing RFP-tagged LimE&#916;coil-RFP and GFP-tagged RBD were treated with vehicle or 5 &#181;M LatA for at least 15 min, and then stimulated with unidirectional laminar flow at 41 dyn/cm2 for 2 s. Images were collected every 3 s. RBD-GFP and LimE&#916;coil-RFP accumulation at the cortex was quantified as in (A). Values are mean &#177; SE. The number of cells analyzed is indicated beside each condition. Scale bar = 10 &#181;m. This figure has been modified from Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig2large.jpg" target="_blank">Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.</a>
<img alt="Figure 3" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig3.jpg" /> 
Figure 3: Representative results for the response of D. discoideum cells to prolonged stimulation with flow. (A) Vegetative cells expressing RFP-tagged LimE&#916;coil were exposed to continuous unidirectional laminar flow at 15 dyn/cm2 and imaged every 3 s. Tracks of 11 cells are shown in (B). Scale bar = 10 &#181;m. This figure has been modified from Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig3large.jpg" target="_blank">Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.</a>
<img alt="Figure 4" class="xfigimg" src="/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig4.jpg" /> 
Figure 4: Representative results for alternative approaches to testing response to acute mechanical stimulation. (A) Vegetative D. discoideum cells expressing RFP-tagged LimE&#916;coil were exposed to a micropipette (*) basally releasing assay buffer at a slow rate. A brief increase in flow rate was achieved by rapid delivery of a bolus of assay buffer at time 0. Images were collected every 3 s. (B) Vegetative D. discoideum cells expressing RFP-tagged LimE&#916;coil plated as a small drop in a microscopy chamber were mechanically stimulated by addition of a large volume of buffer to the chamber. Images were collected every 3 s. Scale bar = 10 &#181;m. Part (A) of this figure has been modified from Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/56411fig4large.jpg" target="_blank">Please click here to view a larger version of this figure.</a>
Supplemental Movie 1: Acute mechanical stimulation triggers rapid and transient translocation of LimE&#916;coil-RFP or PH-Crac-GFP from the cytosol to the cortex in aggregation-competent D. discoideum cells expressing these biosensors. Unidirectional laminar flow was turned on for 5 s at time 0 and cells were imaged at 3 s intervals. Playback speed is 5 frames/s. Two examples for each cell line are shown. Scale bar = 10 &#181;m. This movie corresponds to Figure 2A and has been modified from Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/Suppl_Mov_1_060417.avi">Please click here to download this file.</a>
Supplemental Movie 2: Continuous mechanical stimulation triggers rapid and transient translocation of LimE&#916;coil-RFP from the cytosol to the cortex prior to migration of cells against the direction of the flow. Vegetative cells expressing LimE&#916;coil-RFP were exposed to continuous shear stress at 15 dyn/cm2 starting at time 0 and imaged at 3 s intervals. Playback speed is 10 frames/s. Scale bar = 10 &#181;m. This movie corresponds to Figure 3 and has been previously published in Artemenko et al. (2016)22. <a href="https://cloudflare-jove-com.remotexs.ntu.edu.sg/files/ftp_upload/56411/Suppl_Mov_2_060417.avi">Please click here to download this file.</a>

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Assessment of Dictyostelium discoideum Response to Acute Mechanical Stimulation at JoVE.com

Assessment of Dictyostelium discoideum Response to Acute Mechanical Stimulation

Here we describe methods for assessing cellular response to acute mechanical stimulation. In the microscopy-based assay, we examine localization of fluorescently-labeled biosensors following brief stimulation with shear flow. We also test activation of various proteins of interest in response to acute mechanical stimulation biochemically.

Assessment of Dictyostelium discoideum Response to Acute Mechanical Stimulation

Chemotaxis, or migration up a gradient of a chemoattractant, is the best understood mode of directed migration. Studies using social amoeba Dictyostelium ...

assessment-dictyostelium-discoideum-response-to-acute-mechanical

Nanyang Technological University

Research

JoVE Journal

Biology

6.9K Views.  SUNY Oswego. Here we describe methods for assessing cellular response to acute mechanical stimulation. In the microscopy-based assay, we examine localization of fluorescently-labeled biosensors following brief stimulation with shear flow. We also test activation of various proteins of interest in response to acute mechanical stimulation biochemically.

Video: Assessment of Dictyostelium discoideum Response to Acute Mechanical Stimulation

Mechanical Stimulation of Stem Cells Using Cyclic Uniaxial Strain

The role of mechanical forces in the development and maintenance of biological tissues is well documented, including several mechanically regulated phenomena such as bone remodeling, muscular hypertrophy, and smooth muscle cell plasticity. However, the forces involved are often extremely complex and difficult to monitor and control in vivo. To better investigate the effects of mechanical forces on cells, we have developed an in vitro method for applying uniaxial cyclic tensile strain to adherent cells cultured on elastic membranes. This method utilizes a custom-designed bioreactor with a motorized cam-rotor system to apply the desired force. Here we present a step-by-step video protocol demonstrating how to assemble the various components of each "stretch chamber", including, in this case, a silicone membrane with micropatterned topography to orient the cells with the direction of the strain. We also describe procedures for sterilizing the chambers, seeding cells onto the membrane, latching the chamber into the bioreactor, and adjusting the mechanical parameters (i.e. magnitude and rate of strain). The procedures outlined in this particular protocol are specific for seeding human mesenchymal stem cells onto silicone membranes with 10 &micro;m wide channels oriented parallel to the direction of strain. However, the methods and materials presented in this system are flexible enough to accommodate a number of variations on this theme: strain rate, magnitude, duration, cell type, membrane topography, membrane coating, etc. can all be tailored to the desired application or outcome. This is a robust method for investigating the effects of uniaxial tensile strain applied to cells in vitro.

It is widely understood that mechanical forces in the body can influence cell differentiation and proliferation. Here we present a video protocol demonstrating the use of a custom-built bioreactor for delivering uniaxial cyclic tensile strain to stem cells cultured on flexible micropatterned substrates.

The role of mechanical forces in the development and maintenance of biological tissues is well documented, including several mechanically regulated ...

Using the optokinetic response to study visual function of zebrafish

Optokinetic response (OKR) is a behavior that an animal vibrates its eyes to follow a rotating grating around it. It has been widely used to assess the visual functions of larval zebrafish1-5. Nevertheless, the standard protocol for larval fish is not yet readily applicable in adult zabrafish. Here, we introduce how to measure the OKR of adult zebrafish with our simple custom-built apparatus using a new protocol which is established in our lab. Both our apparatus and step-by-step procedure of OKR in adult zebrafish are illustrated in this video. In addition, the measurements of the larval OKR, as well as the optomotor response (OMR) test of adult zebrafish, are also demonstrated in this video. This OKR assay of adult zebrafish in our experiment may last for up to 4 hours. Such OKR test applied in adult fish will benefit to visual function investigation more efficiently when the adult fish vision system is manipulated.
Su-Qi Zou and Wu Yin contributed equally to this paper.

Optokinetic response has been widely used to assess the visual functions of larval zebrafish. Nevertheless, the standard protocol for larval fish is not yet readily applicable in adults1-5. Here, we introduce how to measure the OKR of adult zebrafish using a new protocol which is established in our lab.

Optokinetic response (OKR) is a behavior that an animal vibrates its eyes to follow a rotating grating around it. It has been widely used to assess the ...

Quantification of &gamma;H2AX Foci in Response to Ionising Radiation

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which are induced by either endogenous metabolic processes or by exogenous sources, are one of the most critical DNA lesions with respect to survival and preservation of genomic integrity. An early response to the induction of DSBs is phosphorylation of the H2A histone variant, H2AX, at the serine-139 residue, in the highly conserved C-terminal SQEY motif, forming &gamma;H2AX1. Following induction of DSBs, H2AX is rapidly phosphorylated by the phosphatidyl-inosito 3-kinase (PIKK) family of proteins, ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM), DNA-protein kinase catalytic subunit and ATM and RAD3-related (ATR)2. Typically, only a few base-pairs (bp) are implicated in a DSB, however, there is significant signal amplification, given the importance of chromatin modifications in DNA damage signalling and repair. Phosphorylation of H2AX mediated predominantly by ATM spreads to adjacent areas of chromatin, affecting approximately 0.03% of total cellular H2AX per DSB2,3. This corresponds to phosphorylation of approximately 2000 H2AX molecules spanning ~2 Mbp regions of chromatin surrounding the site of the DSB and results in the formation of discrete &gamma;H2AX foci which can be easily visualized and quantitated by immunofluorescence microscopy2. The loss of &gamma;H2AX at DSB reflects repair, however, there is some controversy as to what defines complete repair of DSBs; it has been proposed that rejoining of both strands of DNA is adequate however, it has also been suggested that re-instatement of the original chromatin state of compaction is necessary4-8. The disappearence of &gamma;H2AX involves at least in part, dephosphorylation by phosphatases, phosphatase 2A and phosphatase 4C5,6. Further, removal of &gamma;H2AX by redistribution involving histone exchange with H2A.Z has been implicated7,8. Importantly, the quantitative analysis of &gamma;H2AX foci has led to a wide range of applications in medical and nuclear research. Here, we demonstrate the most commonly used immunofluorescence method for evaluation of initial DNA damage by detection and quantitation of &gamma;H2AX foci in &gamma;-irradiated adherent human keratinocytes9.

Quantification of &#947;H2AX Foci in Response to Ionising Radiation

Quantification of DNA double-strand streaks using &gamma;H2AX formation as a molecular marker has become an invaluable tool in radiation biology. Here we demonstrate the use of an immunofluorescence assay for quantification of &gamma;H2AX foci after exposure of cells to radiation.

DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which are induced by either endogenous metabolic processes or by exogenous sources, are one of the most critical DNA ...

Live Cell Response to Mechanical Stimulation Studied by Integrated Optical and Atomic Force Microscopy

To understand the mechanism by which living cells sense mechanical forces, and how they respond and adapt to their environment, a new technology able to investigate cells behavior at sub-cellular level with high spatial and temporal resolution was developed. Thus, an atomic force microscope (AFM) was integrated with total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy and fast-spinning disk (FSD) confocal microscopy. The integrated system is broadly applicable across a wide range of molecular dynamic studies in any adherent live cells, allowing direct optical imaging of cell responses to mechanical stimulation in real-time. Significant rearrangement of the actin filaments and focal adhesions was shown due to local mechanical stimulation at the apical cell surface that induced changes into the cellular structure throughout the cell body. These innovative techniques will provide new information for understanding live cell restructuring and dynamics in response to mechanical force. A detailed protocol and a representative data set that show live cell response to mechanical stimulation are presented.

This paper aims to instruct the reader in the operation of an integrated atomic force-optical imaging microscope for mechanical stimulation of live cells in culture. A step-by-step protocol is presented. A representative data set that shows live cell response to mechanical stimulation is presented.

To understand the mechanism by which living cells sense mechanical forces, and how they respond and adapt to their environment, a new technology able to ...

Intravenous Microinjections of Zebrafish Larvae to Study Acute Kidney Injury

In this video article we describe a zebrafish model of AKI using gentamicin as the nephrotoxicant.  The technique consists of intravenous microinjections on 2 dpf zebrafish. This technique represents an efficient and rapid method to deliver soluble substances into the bloodstream of zebrafish larvae, allowing for the injection of 15-20 fish per hour. In addition to AKI studies, this microinjection technique can also be used for other types of experimental studies such as angiography.  We provide a detailed protocol of the technique from equipment required to visual measures of decreased kidney function. In addition, we also demonstrate the process of fixation, whole mount immunohistochemistry with a kidney tubule marker, plastic embedding and sectioning of the larval zebrafish. We demonstrate that zebrafish larvae injected with gentamicin show morphological features consistent with AKI: edema, loss of cell polarity in proximal tubular epithelial cells, and morphological disruption of the tubule.

We describe a technique of microinjecting the aminoglycoside, gentamicin, into 2 days post-fetilization (dpf) zebrafish larvae to induce acute kidney injury (AKI). We also describe a method for whole mount immunohistochemistry, plastic embedding and sectioning of zebrafish larvae to visualize the AKI mediated damage.

In this video article we describe a zebrafish model of AKI using gentamicin as the nephrotoxicant.  The technique consists of intravenous microinjections ...

Imaging G-protein Coupled Receptor (GPCR)-mediated Signaling Events that Control Chemotaxis of Dictyostelium Discoideum

Many eukaryotic cells can detect gradients of chemical signals in their environments and migrate accordingly 1. This guided cell migration is referred as chemotaxis, which is essential for various cells to carry out their functions such as trafficking of immune cells and patterning of neuronal cells 2, 3. A large family of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) detects variable small peptides, known as chemokines, to direct cell migration in vivo 4. The final goal of chemotaxis research is to understand how a GPCR machinery senses chemokine gradients and controls signaling events leading to chemotaxis. To this end, we use imaging techniques to monitor, in real time, spatiotemporal concentrations of chemoattractants, cell movement in a gradient of chemoattractant, GPCR mediated activation of heterotrimeric G-protein, and intracellular signaling events involved in chemotaxis of eukaryotic cells 5-8. The simple eukaryotic organism, Dictyostelium discoideum, displays chemotaxic behaviors that are similar to those of leukocytes, and D. discoideum is a key model system for studying eukaryotic chemotaxis. As free-living amoebae, D. discoideum cells divide in rich medium. Upon starvation, cells enter a developmental program in which they aggregate through cAMP-mediated chemotaxis to form multicullular structures. Many components involved in chemotaxis to cAMP have been identified in D. discoideum. The binding of cAMP to a GPCR (cAR1) induces dissociation of heterotrimeric G-proteins into G&gamma; and G&beta;&gamma; subunits 7, 9, 10. G&beta;&gamma; subunits activate Ras, which in turn activates PI3K, converting PIP2 into PIP3 on the cell membrane 11-13. PIP3 serve as binding sites for proteins with pleckstrin Homology (PH) domains, thus recruiting these proteins to the membrane 14, 15. Activation of cAR1 receptors also controls the membrane associations of PTEN, which dephosphorylates PIP3 to PIP2 16, 17. The molecular mechanisms are evolutionarily conserved in chemokine GPCR-mediated chemotaxis of human cells such as neutrophils 18. We present following methods for studying chemotaxis of D. discoideum cells. 1. Preparation of chemotactic component cells. 2. Imaging chemotaxis of cells in a cAMP gradient. 3. Monitoring a GPCR induced activation of heterotrimeric G-protein in single live cells. 4. Imaging chemoattractant-triggered dynamic PIP3 responses in single live cells in real time. Our developed imaging methods can be applied to study chemotaxis of human leukocytes.

Imaging G-protein Coupled Receptor GPCR-mediated Signaling Events that Control Chemotaxis of Dictyostelium Discoideum

Here, we describe detailed live cell imaging methods for investigating chemotaxis. We present fluorescence microscopic methods to monitor spatiotemporal dynamics of signaling events in migrating cells. Measurement of signaling events permits us to further understand how a GPCR-signaling network achieves gradient sensing of chemoattractants and controls directional migration of eukaryotic cells.

Many eukaryotic cells can detect gradients of chemical signals in their environments and migrate accordingly 1.  This guided cell migration is referred as ...

Mechanical Stimulation of Chondrocyte-agarose Hydrogels

Articular cartilage suffers from a limited repair capacity when damaged by mechanical insult or degraded by disease, such as osteoarthritis. To remedy this deficiency, several medical interventions have been developed. One such method is to resurface the damaged area with tissue-engineered cartilage; however, the engineered tissue typically lacks the biochemical properties and durability of native cartilage, questioning its long-term survivability. This limits the application of cartilage tissue engineering to the repair of small focal defects, relying on the surrounding tissue to protect the implanted material. To improve the properties of the developed tissue, mechanical stimulation is a popular method utilized to enhance the synthesis of cartilaginous extracellular matrix as well as the resultant mechanical properties of the engineered tissue. Mechanical stimulation applies forces to the tissue constructs analogous to those experienced in vivo. This is based on the premise that the mechanical environment, in part, regulates the development and maintenance of native tissue1,2. The most commonly applied form of mechanical stimulation in cartilage tissue engineering is dynamic compression at physiologic strains of approximately 5-20% at a frequency of 1 Hz1,3. Several studies have investigated the effects of dynamic compression and have shown it to have a positive effect on chondrocyte metabolism and biosynthesis, ultimately affecting the functional properties of the developed tissue4-8. In this paper, we illustrate the method to mechanically stimulate chondrocyte-agarose hydrogel constructs under dynamic compression and analyze changes in biosynthesis through biochemical and radioisotope assays. This method can also be readily modified to assess any potentially induced changes in cellular response as a result of mechanical stimuli.

The biosynthesis of cartilaginous extracellular matrix by chondrocytes can be affected by application of mechanical stimuli. This method describes the technique of applying dynamic compressive strains to chondrocytes encapsulated in 3D constructs and the evaluation of induced changes in chondrocyte metabolism.

Articular cartilage suffers from a limited repair capacity when damaged by mechanical insult or degraded by disease, such as osteoarthritis. To remedy ...

Mechanical Stimulation-induced Calcium Wave Propagation in Cell Monolayers: The Example of Bovine Corneal Endothelial Cells

Intercellular communication is essential for the coordination of physiological processes between cells in a variety of organs and tissues, including the brain, liver, retina, cochlea and vasculature. In experimental settings, intercellular Ca2+-waves can be elicited by applying a mechanical stimulus to a single cell. This leads to the release of the intracellular signaling molecules IP3 and Ca2+ that initiate the propagation of the Ca2+-wave concentrically from the mechanically stimulated cell to the neighboring cells. The main molecular pathways that control intercellular Ca2+-wave propagation are provided by gap junction channels through the direct transfer of IP3 and by hemichannels through the release of ATP. Identification and characterization of the properties and regulation of different connexin and pannexin isoforms as gap junction channels and hemichannels are allowed by the quantification of the spread of the intercellular Ca2+-wave, siRNA, and the use of inhibitors of gap junction channels and hemichannels. Here, we describe a method to measure intercellular Ca2+-wave in monolayers of primary corneal endothelial cells loaded with Fluo4-AM in response to a controlled and localized mechanical stimulus provoked by an acute, short-lasting deformation of the cell as a result of touching the cell membrane with a micromanipulator-controlled glass micropipette with a tip diameter of less than 1 &mu;m. We also describe the isolation of primary bovine corneal endothelial cells and its use as model system to assess Cx43-hemichannel activity as the driven force for intercellular Ca2+-waves through the release of ATP. Finally, we discuss the use, advantages, limitations and alternatives of this method in the context of gap junction channel and hemichannel research.

Intercellular Ca2+-waves are driven by gap junction channels and hemichannels. Here, we describe a method to measure intercellular Ca2+-waves in cell monolayers in response to a local single-cell mechanical stimulus and its application to investigate the properties and regulation of gap junction channels and hemichannels.

Intercellular communication is essential for the coordination of physiological processes between cells in a variety of organs and tissues, including the ...

Investigating the Function of Coronin A in the Early Starvation Response of Dictyostelium discoideum by Aggregation Assays

Dictyostelium discoideum amoeba are found in soil, feeding on bacteria. When food sources become scarce, they secrete factors to initiate a multicellular development program, during which single cells chemotax towards aggregation centers1-4. This process is dependent on the release of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP)5. cAMP is produced in waves through the concerted action of adenylate cyclase and phosphodiesterases, and binds to G protein-coupled cAMP receptors6,7. A widely used assay to analyze the mechanisms involved in the developmental cycle of the lower eukaryote Dictyostelium discoideum is based on the observation of cell aggregation in submerged conditions8,9. This protocol describes the analysis of the role of coronin A in the developmental cycle by starvation in tissue-culture plates submerged in balanced salt solution (BSS)10. Coronin A is a member of the widely conserved protein family of coronins that have been implicated in a wide variety of activities11,12. Dictyostelium cells lacking coronin A are unable to form multicellular aggregates, and this defect can be rescued by supplying pulses of cAMP, suggesting that coronin A acts upstream of the cAMP cascade10. The techniques described in these studies provide robust tools to investigate functions of proteins during the initial stages of the developmental cycle of Dictyostelium discoideum upstream of the cAMP cascade. Therefore, utilizing this aggregation assay may allow the further study of coronin A function and advance our understanding of coronin biology.

Investigating the Function of Coronin A in the Early Starvation Response of Dictyostelium discoideum by Aggregation Assays

The social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum undergoes a developmental transition into a multicellular organism when starved. The evolutionary conserved protein coronin A plays a crucial role in the initiation of development. Using aggregation assays as our main method, we aim to elucidate the role of coronin A in early development.

Dictyostelium discoideum amoeba are found in soil, feeding on bacteria. When food sources become scarce, they secrete factors to initiate a multicellular ...

Analyzing Cell Surface Adhesion Remodeling in Response to Mechanical Tension Using Magnetic Beads

Mechanosensitive cell surface adhesion complexes allow cells to sense the mechanical properties of their surroundings. Recent studies have identified both force-sensing molecules at adhesion sites, and force-dependent transcription factors that regulate lineage-specific gene expression and drive phenotypic outputs. However, the signaling networks converting mechanical tension into biochemical pathways have remained elusive. To explore the signaling pathways engaged upon mechanical tension applied to cell surface receptor, superparamagnetic microbeads can be used. Here we present a protocol for using magnetic beads to apply forces to cell surface adhesion proteins. Using this approach, it is possible to investigate not only force-dependent cytoplasmic signaling pathways by various biochemical approaches, but also adhesion remodeling by magnetic isolation of adhesion complexes attached to the ligand-coated beads. This protocol includes the preparation of ligand-coated superparamagnetic beads, and the application of define tensile forces followed by biochemical analyses. Additionally, we provide a representative sample of data demonstrating that tension applied to integrin-based adhesion triggers adhesion remodeling and alters protein tyrosine phosphorylation.

Cell surface adhesions are central in mechanotransduction, as they transmit mechanical tension and initiate the signaling pathways involved in tissue homeostasis and development. Here, we present a protocol for dissecting the biochemical pathways that are activated in response to tension, using ligand-coated magnetic microbeads and force application to adhesion receptors.

Mechanosensitive cell surface adhesion complexes allow cells to sense the mechanical properties of their surroundings. Recent studies have identified both ...