Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37456789›Full record

ArticleCellular and molecular bioengineering2023

Contact Guidance Drives Upward Cellular Migration at the Mesoscopic Scale.

Xiaoxiao Chen, Youjun Xia, Wenqiang Du, Han Liu, Ran Hou, Yiyu Song, Wenhu Xu, Yuxin Mao, Jianfeng Chen

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Cellular and molecular bioengineering, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Guiding of Cell Migration over Sloped Steps Using TiOJournal of functional biomaterials · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.

Xiaoxiao ChenSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Youjun XiaDepartment of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027 Anhui China.
Wenqiang DuBiomedical Engineering Department, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, CT 06030 USA.
Han LiuSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Ran HouSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Yiyu SongSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Wenhu XuSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Yuxin MaoSchool of Biomedical Engineering, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032 Anhui China.
Jianfeng ChenSchool of Advanced Manufacturing, Nanchang University, Nanchang, 330031 Jiangxi China.
Nanchang University · CNAnhui Medical University · CNUConn Health · USUniversity of Science and Technology of China · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer metastasis is associated with increased cancer incidence, recurrence, and mortality. The role of cell contact guidance behaviors in cancer metastasis has been recognized but has not been elucidated yet. Methods: The contact guidance behavior of cancer cells in response to topographical constraints is identified using microgrooved substrates with varying dimensions at the mesoscopic scale. Then, the cell morphology is determined to quantitatively analyze the effects of substrate dimensions on cells contact guidance. Cell density and migrate velocity signatures within the cellular population are determined using time-lapse phase-contrast microscopy. The effect of soluble factors concentration is determined by culturing cells upside down. Then, the effect of cell-substrate interaction on cell migration is investigated using traction force microscopy. Results: With increasing depth and decreasing groove width, cell elongation and alignment are enhanced, while cell spreading is inhibited. Moreover, cells display preferential distribution on the ridges, which is found to be more pronounced with increasing depth and groove width. Determinations of cell density and migration velocity signatures reveal that the preferential distribution on ridges is caused by cell upward migration. Combined with traction force measurement, we find that migration toward ridges is governed by different cell-substrate interactions between grooves and ridges caused by geometrical constraints. Interestingly, the upward migration of cells at the mesoscopic scale is driven by entropic maximization. Conclusions: The mesoscopic cell contact guidance mechanism based on the entropic force driven theory provides basic support for the study of cell alignment and migration along healthy tissues with varying size, thereby aiding in the prediction of cancer metastasis. Graphical Abstract: Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12195-023-00766-y.

Indexed as

Cell migrationCell-substrate adhesionContact guidanceMesoscopic scaleTopographical features

Identifiers

PMID37456789
PMCPMC10338420
OpenAlexW4367596763

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.