Ranking migration cue contributions to guiding individual fibroblasts faced with a directional decision in simple microfluidic bifurcations.

Directed cell migration in complex micro-environments, such as in vivo pores, is important for predicting locations of artificial tissue growth and optimizing scaffold architectures. Yet, the directional decisions of cells facing multiple physiochemical cues have not been characterized. Hence, we aim to provide a ranking of the relative importance of the following cues to the decision-making of individual fibroblast cells: chemoattractant concentration gradient, channel width, mitosis, and contact-guidance.

Cell Sequence and Mitosis Affect Fibroblast Directional Decision-Making During Chemotaxis in Microfluidic Mazes.

Introduction: Directed fibroblast migration is central to highly proliferative processes in regenerative medicine and developmental biology. However, the mechanisms by which single fibroblasts affect each other's directional decisions, while chemotaxing in microscopic pores, are not well understood.

Methods: We explored effects of cell sequence and mitosis on fibroblast platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB)-induced migration in microfluidic mazes with two possible through paths: short and long.