Modeling mechanical cell-matrix interactions and co-operative effects in tissue formation

Till Bretschneider

Theoretical Biology, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
email: t.bretschneider@uni-bonn.de

Cell-motion requires that intracellular generated forces are transmitted to the outside. Integral proteins of the cell-membrane couple the cytoskeleton to the extracellular matrix (ECM). Looking on cells crawling on ECM-like elastic substrates one gets impressive pictures of how strong these forces can be and that they can act at distances of many cell diameters. I present a hybrid-model which takes into account discrete cells of a defined volume which can attach and exert forces to binding sites of an underlying two-dimensional substrate. The substrate is modelled as a visco-elastic fluid. This framework model is used to test various assumptions about the intracellular force generation and possible co-operative effects. I'll show that reinforcement of cytoskeleton-integrin linkages due to stress in the matrix could explain mechano-sensing and in turn aggregation of cells.