Physical-mechanical image of the cell surface on the base of AFM data in contact mode

Abstract

Physical and mechanical properties of the cell surface are well-known markers of a cell state. The complex of the parameters characterizing the cell surface properties, such as the elastic modulus (E), the parameters of adhesive (Fa), and friction (Ff) forces can be measured using atomic force microscope (AFM) in a contact mode and form namely the physical-mechanical image of the cell surface that is a fundamental element of the cell mechanical phenotype. The paper aims at forming the physical-mechanical images of the surface of two types of glutaraldehyde-fixed cancerous cells (human epithelial cells of larynx carcinoma, HEp-2c cells, and breast adenocarcinoma, MCF-7 cells) based on the data obtained by AFM in air and revealing the basic difference between them. The average values of friction, elastic and adhesive forces, and the roughness of lateral force maps, as well as dependence of the fractal dimension of lateral force maps on Z-scale factor have been studied. We have revealed that the response of microscale areas of the HEp-2c cell surface having numerous microvilli to external mechanical forces is less expressed and more homogeneous in comparison with the response of MCF-7 cell surface.