Durotaxis is a form of cell migration in which cells are guided by rigidity gradients, which arise from differential structural properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Most normal cells migrate up rigidity gradients.
A diagram of the formation of an atherosclerotic plaque. Note the blue vascular smooth muscle cells, which migrate from the tunica media into the tunica intima, where the stiff plaque is forming.
Cell migration is a central process in the development and maintenance of multicellular organisms. Tissue formation during embryonic development, wound healing and immune responses all require the orchestrated movement of cells in particular directions to specific locations. Cells often migrate in response to specific external signals, including chemical signals and mechanical signals. Errors during this process have serious consequences, including intellectual disability, vascular disease, tumor formation and metastasis. An understanding of the mechanism by which cells migrate may lead to the development of novel therapeutic strategies for controlling, for example, invasive tumour cells.
(A) Dynamic microtubules are necessary for tail retraction and are distributed at the rear end in a migrating cell. Green, highly dynamic microtubules; yellow, moderately dynamic microtubules and red, stable microtubules. (B) Stable microtubules act as struts and prevent tail retraction and thereby inhibit cell migration.
Schematic representation of the collective biomechanical and molecular mechanism of cell motion
Rearward membrane flow (red arrows) and vesicle trafficking from back to front (blue arrows) drive adhesion-independent migration.
