Fluctuations in experiments of cells on substrates (INVITED)

Abstract eng:
We present a statistical mechanics framework to model the inherent variability observed in experiments of cells on a range of engineered substrates. The framework comprises two components. First, the probability of observing the cell in a particular state is estimated in terms of the free-energy of that state by invoking the concept of maximising Gibbs entropy. Second, a cytoskeletal protein model is presented for this free-energy of a given state. Predictions using this framework are discussed for a range of experimentally observed phenomena. These include: (i) the spreading of cells as a function of the stiffness and the substrate; (ii) durotaxis whereby cells tends to migrate guided by rigidity gradients on substrates and (iii) differentiation of stem cells guided by the stiffness of substrates.

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