Durotaxis by Human Cancer Cells (Biophysical Journal)

Durotaxis is a type of directed cell migration in which cells respond to a gradient of extracellular stiffness. Using automated tracking of positional data for large sample sizes of single migrating cells, we investigated: (a) whether cancer cells can undergo durotaxis, (b) whether cell durotactic efficiency varies depending on the regional compliance of stiffness gradients, (c) whether a specific cell migration parameter such as speed or time of migration correlates with durotaxis, and (d) whether Arp2/3, previously implicated in leading edge dynamics and migration, contributes to cancer cell durotaxis.