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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 27: Cell Mechanics I
BP 27.4: Vortrag
Donnerstag, 12. März 2026, 10:30–10:45, BAR/0205
Blebbing under confinement functions as a pressure-relief mechanism following cortical contraction — •Fatemeh Abbasi1,2, Timo Betz2, and Eva Kiermaier1,3,4 — 1Life and Medical Sciences (LIMES) Institute, Immune and Tumor Biology, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany. — 2Third Institute of Physics-Biophysics, Georg August University Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany. — 3Department of Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany. — 4Deutsches Zentrum Immuntherapie (DZI), Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany.
Cells migrating through tissues experience mechanical confinement that reshapes their morphology and internal stress. Using Confinement Force Microscopy (CFM), we dynamically controlled vertical confinement during live imaging and quantified 3D stress responses. A single confinement step triggered a biphasic response: an immediate passive stress spike from nuclear compression followed by a slower, actomyosin-driven buildup linked to bleb formation. Both blebbistatin and Y-27632 reduced traction stresses; notably, Y-27632 fully blocked blebbing, while blebbistatin allowed it only under strong compression, indicating partial decoupling between contractility and morphology. Blebbistatin also lowered cellular stiffness and viscosity, promoting rapid stress relaxation. These results suggest that blebbing functions as a pressure-relief mechanism allowing cells to maintain mechanical balance under confinement.
Keywords: Cell confinement; cell blebbing; cell mechanics; Actomyosin activity