{"title":"STED/AFM as a tool to investigate mechanical and adhesive properties of migrating keratinocytes.","authors":"Mariya Y Radeva, Jens Waschke, Michael Fuchs","doi":"10.1080/19336918.2026.2657675","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>E-cadherin is a key component of adherens junctions which maintains epithelial integrity. In keratinocytes, wound healing requires dynamic modulation of adhesion and cytoskeletal organization. Using a wound healing assay combined with stimulated emission depletion/atomic force microscopy (STED/AFM), we analysed E-cadherin binding during murine keratinocyte migration. Wound closure occurred within 6 h and was accompanied by E-cadherin accumulation at the leading edge. Transient expression of E-Cadherin-SNAP enabled investigation of E-cadherin interactions. Inhibition of actin polymerization abolished E-cadherin binding and reduced cellular stiffness. Imaging of SiR-actin-labeled cells enabled simultaneous visualization of migration and measurement of binding and mechanical properties. E-cadherin retained functional binding properties during migration. These findings establish STED/AFM as a powerful method to investigate single-molecule binding properties in migrating cells.</p>","PeriodicalId":9680,"journal":{"name":"Cell Adhesion & Migration","volume":"20 1","pages":"2657675"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3000,"publicationDate":"2026-12-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13089918/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Cell Adhesion & Migration","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/19336918.2026.2657675","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2026/4/15 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"CELL BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
E-cadherin is a key component of adherens junctions which maintains epithelial integrity. In keratinocytes, wound healing requires dynamic modulation of adhesion and cytoskeletal organization. Using a wound healing assay combined with stimulated emission depletion/atomic force microscopy (STED/AFM), we analysed E-cadherin binding during murine keratinocyte migration. Wound closure occurred within 6 h and was accompanied by E-cadherin accumulation at the leading edge. Transient expression of E-Cadherin-SNAP enabled investigation of E-cadherin interactions. Inhibition of actin polymerization abolished E-cadherin binding and reduced cellular stiffness. Imaging of SiR-actin-labeled cells enabled simultaneous visualization of migration and measurement of binding and mechanical properties. E-cadherin retained functional binding properties during migration. These findings establish STED/AFM as a powerful method to investigate single-molecule binding properties in migrating cells.
期刊介绍:
Cell Adhesion & Migration is a multi-disciplinary, peer reviewed open access journal that focuses on the biological or pathological implications of cell-cell and cell-microenvironment interactions. The main focus of this journal is fundamental science. The journal strives to serve a broad readership by regularly publishing review articles covering specific disciplines within the field, and by publishing focused issues that provide an overview on specific topics of interest within the field.
Cell Adhesion & Migration publishes relevant and timely original research, as well as authoritative overviews, commentaries, and perspectives, providing context for the work presented in Cell Adhesion & Migration and for key results published elsewhere. Original research papers may cover all topics important in the field of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Cell Adhesion & Migration also publishes articles related to cell biomechanics, biomaterial, and development of related imaging technologies.