Role of Epidermal Growth Factor-Triggered PI3K/Akt Signaling in the Migration of Medulloblastoma-Derived Cells.

Medulloblastoma (MB) is the most common brain cancer diagnosed among children. The cellular pathways that regulate MB invasion in response to environmental cues remain incompletely understood. Herein, we examine the migratory response of human MB-derived Daoy cells to different concentration profiles of Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) using a microfluidic system.

Low Concentration Microenvironments Enhance the Migration of Neonatal Cells of Glial Lineage.

Glial tumors have demonstrated abilities to sustain growth recruitment of glial progenitor cells (GPCs), which is believed to be driven by chemotactic cues. Previous studies have illustrated that mouse GPCs of different genetic backgrounds are able to replicate the dispersion pattern seen in the human disease. How GPCs with genetic backgrounds transformed by tumor paracrine signaling respond to extracellular cues migration is largely unexplored, and remains a limiting factor in utilizing GPCs as therapeutic targets.

Flow-induced shear stresses increase the number of cell-cell contacts within extracellular matrix.

The formation of cell-cell contacts within extracellular matrix (ECM) is essential to maintain tissue homeostasis and metabolism, as well as critical toward the cell-ECM mechanotransduction that can affect intracellular organization and intercellular communication to enable cell response to external stimuli. This work illustrates the effects of shear stresses on cell-cell contacts within pre-stressed collagen ECM that were loaded in two separate conditions of constant flow (CF) and constant elution time (CET). The numbers of cell-cell contacts and cytoplasmic processes in both media and 3D ECM gels were analyzed in order to examine the shear effects of different magnitudes and time periods on 3D cell-ECM formation.

Internal fluid flow increases cellular interconnects between Medial Collateral Ligament fibroblasts and cellular extensions within three-dimensional collagen matrixes.

The interconnectivity of fibroblasts within the ligamentous extracellular matrix has been largely overlooked. Studies on the cell-to-cell contacts with their neighbors via gap junctions in ligament fibroblasts, and works on the ability of fibroblasts to generate interconnected networks in vivo, suggest interfibroblastic interactions play an important role in fundamental biological processes, including homeostasis and wound healing. The current study examines how fluidic shear stresses imposed by internal flow can be used to mediate the formation of three-dimensional, interconnected fibroblast networks within collagen solutions.