Loss of contact inhibition of locomotion in the absence of JAM-A promotes entotic cell engulfment

Entosis: the core mechanism and crosstalk with other cell death programs

Cell death pathways play critical roles in organism development and homeostasis as well as in the pathogenesis of various diseases. While studies over the last decade have elucidated numerous different forms of cell death that can eliminate cells in various contexts, how certain mechanisms impact physiology is still not well understood. Moreover, recent studies have shown that multiple forms cell death can occur in a cell population, with different forms of death eliminating individual cells. Here, we aim to describe the known molecular mechanisms of entosis, a non-apoptotic cell engulfment process, and discuss signaling mechanisms that control its induction as well as its possible crosstalk with other cell death mechanisms.

A micropattern-based assay to study contact inhibition of locomotion and entosis of adherent human and canine cells in vitro

We present a protocol for using micropatterns to study post-collision locomotion and entosis of human and canine cells in vitro. We describe steps for lentiviral transduction and the preparation of micropatterned slides consisting of narrow matrix-coated stripes separated by cytophobic spacers. We then detail cell seeding, chamber assembly, and live cell analysis. We provide steps for analysis by live cell imaging using fluorescence microscopy as well as fixing for subsequent analysis by confocal microscopy or correlative light and electron microscopy. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Kummer et al. (2022)¹ and Schwietzer et al. (2022).².