Seeing around corners: Cells solve mazes and respond at a distance using attractant breakdown.
Overview
Paper Summary
This study reveals how cells can navigate complex environments, like mazes, by creating their own chemical gradients through local degradation of attractants. Using both computational models and experiments with Dictyostelium cells and mouse pancreatic cancer cells, the researchers show that cells efficiently find their way through mazes, with accuracy depending on factors like attractant diffusivity, cell speed, and path complexity. The findings suggest that self-generated gradients are crucial for successful navigation during long-range migratory processes like inflammation and germ cell migration.
Explain Like I'm Five
Cells can navigate complex environments like mazes by breaking down chemical attractants around them, creating their own directional signals. This helps them make accurate choices even in tricky situations.
Possible Conflicts of Interest
None identified
Identified Limitations
Rating Explanation
This study presents a novel mechanism for long-range cell navigation in complex environments. The combination of computational modeling, microfluidic experiments, and mathematical analysis provides strong support for the proposed mechanism. While the study relies on in vitro models and a limited number of cell types, the findings have broad implications for understanding cell migration in diverse biological processes and warrant further investigation in more complex in vivo systems. There is no financial or professional conflict of interest disclosed in the manuscript.
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