Quantitative analysis of chemoattractant gradient induced cell migration velocity and automatic controller design

Abstract

Cell chemotaxis is a phenomenon in which cells spatially sense the chemoattractant gradient in the extra-environment and move along this gradient. This paper illustrates the relationship between the chemoattractant gradient and the cell velocity quantitatively, using a single-cell motility assay method based on optically manipulated microsources. A case study was performed on leukemia cancer cells. Quantitative study indicates that the cell is sensitive to the gradient, and can move faster under a high gradient. Based on the quantitative relationship, a control strategy was proposed to realize automatically induced cell migration. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method.