To date, researchers have developed many tools to study the interactions between cells and their 3D micro environment. One of the most popular techniques is traction force microscopy (TFM). It is a state-of-the-art method for detecting magnetic properties (Breakthrough technology to measure rotational motion of cells) on cell surfaces, providing important information about how cells perceive, interact and respond to energy. However, TFM applications are limited in providing information about the translocation of signals in cellular tissues. Information on other degrees of freedom, such as translation, remains speculative due to technical limitations and little research on this topic.
An engineering expert from the University of Hong Kong has proposed a new method to measure the mobile phone’s tensile strength and fill the research gap. The interdisciplinary research team is Dr. Zhiqin Chu from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Dr. Yuan Lin is from the field of engineering. They used unique nitrogen holes (NVs) in nanodiamonds (NDs) to propose a linear modulation method (LPM) that can measure both the transduction and transduction of signals in cellular tissues.
The study on the breakthrough technology to measure rotational motion of cells, provides new insights into multidimensional cellular tensile strength field measurements and the results have been published in the journal Nano Letters. The research, titled “All-optical transformation of a single dot in nanodiamonds: Revealing motion and translation in cell tensile strength,” is also featured in the journal’s supplemental cover.
This research demonstrates the precise measurement of translocation and translocation of markers on cell surfaces. These experimental results confirm theoretical calculations and previous results.
Given their ultra-high photostability, good biocompatibility, and good surface chemical modification, fluorescent NDs with NV centers are attractive fluorescent markers for many biological applications. The researchers found that, based on the measurement results of the relationship between the fluorescence intensity and the orientation of the single NV center with respect to the laser polarization direction, high orientation measurements can be obtained in background-free imaging.
Thus, the LPM method developed by the group helps to solve technical problems in the measurement of cellular energy in mechanobiology, which involves the interaction of biology, engineering, chemistry and physics. .
“Most cells in multicellular organisms receive energy that is organized in space and time. Developing different cellular traction microscopy is one of the biggest challenges in this field,” said Dr Chu.
“Compared to conventional TFM, this new technology provides us with a suitable tool to study real 3D cell-extracellular matrix interactions. It helps to perform both translational and transversal analysis in the cell traction field and reveals information about the cellular traction force,” he added.
The main strength of the study is the ability to show both the rotation and rotation of the signal correctly. This is a major step in the investigation of mechanical interactions at the cell-matrix interface. It also provides new research methods.
Through special chemicals on the surface of cells, cells interact and stick together in a process called cell adhesion. The way a cell experiences voltage during adhesion is best described as “in-plane”. Processes such as shear stress, actin flux, and growth adhesion are all interconnected and exhibit complex directional changes. The LPM method can help to understand the complexities surrounding focal adhesion and to isolate different workloads at the nanoscale (e.g. normal drag, shear strength). It can also help to understand how cell adhesion reacts to different types of stress and how these modify mechanotransduction (the process by which cells convert mechanical stimuli into electrochemical activity).
This technology also holds promise for studying a variety of other biomechanical processes, including immune cell activation, tissue repair, cancer cell regeneration and invasion. For example, T-cell receptors, which play an important role in the immune response to cancer, can generate energy that is critical for tissue growth. Advanced LPM technology can help assess multi-dimensional energy and provide insight into physical development.
The research team is actively working on research methods to extend the optical imaging capabilities and map multiple nanodiamonds simultaneously.
