Mechanobiology applications of SENSOCELL laser tweezers
We believe that Mechanobiology is a field of pioneers, an emerging discipline that is setting the bases of future treatments to stop diseases like Cancer, Fibrosis or Alzheimer. Our dream is to provide tools and solutions to these researchers to help them decipher the insights of how physical forces and the mechanical properties of cells and tissues trigger or regulate such diseases in order to find the key for novel therapeutics.
Mechanobiology of living cells and tissues
Our SENSOCELL optical trapping platform allows unprecedented experiments in Cell Mechanobiology research. Our optical tweezers setup combined with a unique direct force sensor technology, will allow you to manipulate, deform and mechanically stimulate cells or endogenous structures such as the cell membrane, the cell nucleus, vesicles and other organelles while tracking the in vivo biological forces involved, even inside living cells and tissues.
SENSOCELL will allow you to study cell membrane mechanoreceptors forces at the single-molecule level and cellular mechanotransduction processes performing tether pulling experiments and mechanically stimulating the cells. Use our automatized active rheology routine to measure the mechanical properties of biologic samples like cells or tissues. Study nuclear mechanotransduction performing cell nucleus stretching experiments. With SENSOCELL, you will also be able to manipulate cells, engage cell-cell interactions and measure cell-cell adhesion forces, cell avidity or cell-cell contacts tension. Other applications include analyzing the activity and kinetics of motor proteins in vitro and in vivo conditions or measuring cell motility forces of microswimmers and adhesion forces of bacteria.
Are you thinking in a different application? Contact us and we will be happy to see what we can do!
Cell membrane tension & deformation
Apply and measure forces on cell membranes trapping the membrane itself or using adhered microbeads as probes. Automatize your custom tether pulling experiments with LightAce’s programmable routines. Deform and stretch cells and measure the forces applied.
Cell nucleus & subcellular mechanics
Indent and stretch the cell nucleus using internalized microspheres or internal cellular structures such as lipid droplets as probes while measuring the involved forces. Apply creep & stress-relaxation tests inside cells manipulating subcellular endogenous structures.
Micro Rheology of cells & biomaterials
Use our automatized active rheology routine to measure the viscoelastic properties of cells and tissues: cell elasticity, cell viscosity and cell stiffness can be assessed up to the kHz and kPa regimes.
Cell-cell interaction forces
Manipulate whole cells to engage cell-cell interactions and measure their binding forces while having absolute control on cells orientation and contact time. Perform single-cell analysis of cell avidity and cell cell adhesion forces.
Mechanoreceptors & mechanosensitive ion channels
Investigate the dynamics and measure forces of transmembrane mechanoreceptors in cell-ECM interactions at the single-molecule level or study mechanosensitive ion channels activity in cells. Use functionalized beads and/or substrates to measure in vitro receptor-ligand binding forces.
Microtubules & motor proteins activity
Study the mechanics of microtubules and the activity and kinetics of motor proteins in vitro and in vivo conditions. Measure stall forces of protein motors and observe tug-of-war and cooperating phenomena inside living cells.
Microswimmers cell motility
Study and experimentally measure the stochastic force dynamics generated by sperm cells, algae, bacteria or artificial microswimmers.
Main features & biological applications of SENSOCELL optical tweezers
Applications in colloids and soft material physics
Use SENSOCELL optical tweezers to measure colloidal forces and assess the interactions between colloidal particles in liquids, gels or even complex media like liquid crystals. Please contact us for more information about these applications.
Is your application not listed above? Write us and we will be happy to discuss about it!
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