Propagation dynamics of electrotactic motility in large epithelial cell sheets
Yan Zhang,
Guoqing Xu,
Jiandong Wu,
Rachel M. Lee,
Zijie Zhu,
Yaohui Sun,
Kan Zhu,
Wolfgang Losert,
Simon Liao,
Gong Zhang,
Tingrui Pan,
Zhengping Xu,
Francis Lin,
Min Zhao
Affiliations
Yan Zhang
Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; School of Public Health, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310018, China; Institute of Environmental Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310058, China; Micro-Nano Innovations (MiNI) Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Guoqing Xu
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N2, Canada; Department of Applied Computer Science, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9, Canada
Jiandong Wu
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N2, Canada; Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
Rachel M. Lee
Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
Zijie Zhu
Micro-Nano Innovations (MiNI) Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Yaohui Sun
Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Kan Zhu
Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Wolfgang Losert
Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA; Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
Simon Liao
Department of Applied Computer Science, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9, Canada
Gong Zhang
Department of Applied Computer Science, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9, Canada; Brain Engineering Center, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, China
Tingrui Pan
Micro-Nano Innovations (MiNI) Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Institute of Biomedical and Health Engineering, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China; Shenzhen Engineering Laboratory of Single-molecule Detection and Instrument Development, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518055, China; Suzhou Institute for Advanced Research, University of Science and Technology of China, Suzhou 215123, China; Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Zhengping Xu
Institute of Environmental Medicine, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310058, China; Corresponding author
Francis Lin
Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, R3T 2N2, Canada; Corresponding author
Min Zhao
Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Dermatology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Corresponding author
Summary: Directional migration initiated at the wound edge leads epithelia to migrate in wound healing. How such coherent migration is achieved is not well understood. Here, we used electric fields to induce robust migration of sheets of human keratinocytes and developed an in silico model to characterize initiation and propagation of epithelial collective migration. Electric fields initiate an increase in migration directionality and speed at the leading edge. The increases propagate across the epithelial sheets, resulting in directional migration of cell sheets as coherent units. Both the experimental and in silico models demonstrated vector-like integration of the electric and default directional cues at free edge in space and time. The resultant collective migration is consistent in experiments and modeling, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The keratinocyte model thus faithfully reflects key features of epithelial migration as a coherent tissue in vivo, e.g. that leading cells lead, and that epithelium maintains cell-cell junction.
