Abstract
This work incorporates experimental methods based on Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) in order to extract the physical and mechanical characteristics of the head and neck cancer (HN-5) cell line such as cell topography, modulus of elasticity and viscoelastic properties. The initial parameters to determine the mechanical properties are obtained by extracting information from cantilever’s force-displacement curve and vertical and horizontal displacement. Next, the changes in elasticity modulus at different points in the cell are attained using the experimental results, followed by studying the differences of these properties at various spots of the cell. Furthermore, cellular folding factor is calculated as a significant property in diagnosing the extent of cancer progression. Moreover, parameters such as adhesion and intermolecular forces are measured which are involved in the first phase of manipulation and during the application of the cantilever force to the particle. Finally, after calculating the indentation depth and contact radius using contact theories, critical manipulation time and force are obtained. Through modeling the cell, the creep function, the spring constant and the damping coefficient corresponding to the cell, are also extracted.
Highlights
Mechanical models are useful tools to identify cancer cells and viruses accurately and to predict the biological particles’ behavior should be explored. These models help to understand the topography of biological cells, as well as the physical and mechanical characteristics such as: elastic modulus, adhesion and viscoelastic properties of the cell
Preparing the equipment and cell for the experiment The Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) device used in this work is the Nanowizard II atomic microscope manufactured by JPK (JPK Instruments Inc., Germany) with the scan range from 1 nm to 100 μm which is ideal for soft material investigations as well as interaction studies
Using the Hertz and Derjaguin–Muller– Toporov (DMT)’s elastic theory, the Young modulus of the cell was calculated at its various points
Summary
Mechanical models are useful tools to identify cancer cells and viruses accurately and to predict the biological particles’ behavior should be explored. These models help to understand the topography of biological cells, as well as the physical and mechanical characteristics such as: elastic modulus, adhesion and viscoelastic properties of the cell. Prabhune et al studied the mechanical properties of normal and malignant thyroid cells using AFM and showed that malignant thyroid cells are 3 to 5 times softer compared to primary normal thyroid cells. These results highlighted the importance of cultivation period influencing various kinds of cells’ mechanics [2]. The elasticity of benign (MCF-10A) and cancerous (MCF-7) human breast epithelial cells was characterized by AFM indentation using a micro-sized spherical probe and it was shown that malignant (MCF7) breast cells have an apparent Young’s modulus significantly lower (1.4–1.8 times) than that of their
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