Atomic Force Microscopy for the Examination of Single Cell Rheology

Title:Atomic Force Microscopy for the Examination of Single Cell Rheology

Volume: 13 Issue: 14

Author(s): Takaharu Okajima

Affiliation:

Keywords: Atomic force microscopy, creep relaxation, force modulation, log-normal distribution, power-law behavior, single cell rheology, single cell diagnosis, stress relaxation, Rheological properties, living cells, cell mechanics, various biological functions, mechanical diagnosis, micro-rheological techniques

Abstract: Rheological properties of living cells play important roles in regulating their various biological functions. Therefore, measuring cell rheology is crucial for not only elucidating the relationship between the cell mechanics and functions, but also mechanical diagnosis of single cells. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is becoming a useful technique for single cell diagnosis because it allows us to measure the rheological properties of adherent cells at any region on the surface without any modifications. In this review, we summarize AFM techniques for examining single cell rheology in frequency and time domains. Recent applications of AFM for investigating the statistical analysis of single cell rheology in comparison to other micro-rheological techniques are reviewed, and we discuss what specificity and universality of cell rheology are extracted using AFM.

Cite this article as:

Okajima Takaharu, Atomic Force Microscopy for the Examination of Single Cell Rheology, Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology 2012; 13 (14) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/138920101314151120122846