Studying the dynamics of tissue when homeostasis is disrupted
EU-LIFE Science Newsletter 3/2017
News from the Biotech Research & Innovation Centre (BRIC), Denmark
The dynamics of tissues and how they become disrupted in disease remain largely unknown. In a cross-disciplinary study, BRIC researchers together with other researchers at the University of Copenhagen investigated the correlation between the dynamics of cancer cell division and invasion. The study was published in Scientific Reports, providing new insights into how tissue dynamics are altered when homeostasis is challenged.
Uncontrolled cell division and tissue invasion are two of the classic hallmarks of cancer. Yet the dynamics of cancer cell division and motility have not previously been quantified and correlated. A joint effort between researchers at BRIC and at the Niels Bohr Institute (both at the University of Copenhagen) has characterized the dynamics of invasive and non-invasive breast cancer tissues using human and murine model systems.
The intrinsic tissue velocities, as well as the divergence and vorticity were measured around dividing cells with different invasive abilities. The researchers found a strong correlation between the velocity, divergence and vorticity fields of the cancer cell and its invasive potential. The researchers formulated a model which treats the tissue as a viscoelastic continuum, which very closely reproduced the data. The model allowed for deduction of the force exerted by the dividing cells on the surrounding tissue, and this force was found to correlate with the invasiveness of the cancer.
This study provides the first insight into how the dynamics of cancer as a tissue are altered in relation to invasiveness. These results are useful for understanding the underlying fundamental mechanisms of tissue dynamics.
Original article: West, A.V., Wullkopf, L., Christensen, A., Leijnse, N., Tarp, J.M., Mathiesen, J., Erler, J.T.#, and Oddershede, L.B.#, (2017) Dynamics of cancerous tissue correlates with invasiveness. Sci Rep. 6;7:43800. #co-corresponding.
