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Cortical ductility governs cell-cell adhesion mechanics

Arora, A.; Rizvi, M. S.; Grenci, G.; Dilasser, F.; Fu, C.; Ganguli, M.; Vaishnavi, S.; Paramsivam, K.; Budnar, S.; Noodstra, I.; Yap, A.; Viasnoff, V.

2023-11-28 cell biology
10.1101/2023.11.28.568975 bioRxiv
Show abstract

This paper challenges our understanding of cell-cell adhesion by emphasising the role of mechanical dissipation at the cellular level. We have developed new microdevices to measure the energy dissipated during the rupture of junctions between cell-cell doublets. Using a synthetic cadherin approach, we decoupled the role of cadherin binding energy, signalling and downstream regulation of cytoskeletal architecture. This yielded a phase diagram in which cell junctions transition from a ductile to a brittle fracture mode based on their ratio of cortical tension and shape relaxation time. We recapitulated our results using a descriptive mechanical simulation approach. Our results shift our understanding of cell-cell adhesion from the current focus on bond energy and tension to the key role played by energy dissipation in the cytoskeleton during junction deformation and its active mechanosensitive regulation.

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