Cells in gels: Mechanosensing and active stress generation
Prof. Chase Broedersz - SFB1032 - Ludwig-Maximillians-Univertität München
Large-scale force generation is essential for biological functions such as cell motility, embryonic development, and muscle contraction. In these processes, forces generated at the molecular level by motor proteins are transmitted by disordered fiber networks, resulting in large-scale active stresses. While these fiber networks are well characterized macroscopically, this stress generation by microscopic active units is not well understood. We theoretically study force transmission in these networks, and find that local active forces are rectified towards isotropic contraction and strongly amplified as fibers collectively buckle in the vicinity of the active units. This stress amplification is reinforced by the networks' disordered nature, but saturates for high densities of active units. In the last part of this talk I will talk about the role of network disorder for the mechanosensing function of cells. In particular, I will show theoretical results to set physical bounds on the accuracy of mechanosensing of a cell migrating in a 3D tissue.