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Wang H, Ardila C, Jindal A, Aggarwal V, Wang W, Vande Geest J, Jiang Y, Xing J, Sant S. Protrusion force and cell-cell adhesion-induced polarity alignment govern collective migration modes. Biophys J 2025; 124:1674-1692. [PMID: 40235119 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2025.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2024] [Revised: 02/28/2025] [Accepted: 04/10/2025] [Indexed: 04/17/2025] Open
Abstract
Collective migration refers to the coordinated movement of cells as a single unit during migration. Although collective migration enhances invasive and metastatic potential in cancer, the mechanisms driving this behavior and regulating tumor migration plasticity remain poorly understood. This study provides a mechanistic model explaining the emergence of different modes of collective migration under hypoxia-induced secretome. We focus on the interplay between cellular protrusion force and cell-cell adhesion using collectively migrating three-dimensional microtumors as models with well-defined microenvironments. Large microtumors show directional migration due to intrinsic hypoxia, whereas small microtumors exhibit radial migration when exposed to hypoxic secretome. Here, we developed an in silico multi-scale microtumor model based on the cellular Potts model and implemented in CompuCell3D to elucidate underlying mechanisms. We identified distinct migration modes within specific regions of protrusion force and cell-cell adhesion parameter space and studied these modes using in vitro experimental microtumor models. We show that sufficient cellular protrusion force is crucial for radial and directional collective microtumor migration. Radial migration emerges when sufficient cellular protrusion force is generated, driving neighboring cells to move collectively in diverse directions. Within migrating tumors, strong cell-cell adhesion enhances the alignment of cell polarity, breaking the symmetric angular distribution of protrusion forces and leading to directional microtumor migration. The integrated results from the experimental and computational models provide fundamental insights into collective migration in response to different microenvironmental stimuli. Our computational and experimental models can adapt to various scenarios, providing valuable insights into cancer migration mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huijing Wang
- Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Catalina Ardila
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Ajita Jindal
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Vaishali Aggarwal
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Weikang Wang
- Institute of Theoretical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; School of Physical Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jonathan Vande Geest
- Department of Bioengineering, Swanson School of Engineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Yi Jiang
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Jianhua Xing
- Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; UPMC-Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
| | - Shilpa Sant
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Department of Bioengineering, Swanson School of Engineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; UPMC-Hillman Cancer Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Retzky College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
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Jenner AL, Smalley M, Goldman D, Goins WF, Cobbs CS, Puchalski RB, Chiocca EA, Lawler S, Macklin P, Goldman A, Craig M. Agent-based computational modeling of glioblastoma predicts that stromal density is central to oncolytic virus efficacy. iScience 2022; 25:104395. [PMID: 35637733 PMCID: PMC9142563 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2021] [Revised: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Oncolytic viruses (OVs) are emerging cancer immunotherapy. Despite notable successes in the treatment of some tumors, OV therapy for central nervous system cancers has failed to show efficacy. We used an ex vivo tumor model developed from human glioblastoma tissue to evaluate the infiltration of herpes simplex OV rQNestin (oHSV-1) into glioblastoma tumors. We next leveraged our data to develop a computational, model of glioblastoma dynamics that accounts for cellular interactions within the tumor. Using our computational model, we found that low stromal density was highly predictive of oHSV-1 therapeutic success, suggesting that the efficacy of oHSV-1 in glioblastoma may be determined by stromal-to-tumor cell regional density. We validated these findings in heterogenous patient samples from brain metastatic adenocarcinoma. Our integrated modeling strategy can be applied to suggest mechanisms of therapeutic responses for central nervous system cancers and to facilitate the successful translation of OVs into the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrianne L. Jenner
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Munisha Smalley
- Division of Engineering in Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - William F. Goins
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Charles S. Cobbs
- Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment, Swedish Neuroscience Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ralph B. Puchalski
- Ben and Catherine Ivy Center for Advanced Brain Tumor Treatment, Swedish Neuroscience Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - E. Antonio Chiocca
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Sean Lawler
- Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paul Macklin
- Department of Intelligent Systems Engineering, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Aaron Goldman
- Division of Engineering in Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Morgan Craig
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montréal, QC, Canada
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Huang K, Liu J, Chen Q, Feng D, Wu H, Aldanakh A, Jian Y, Xu Z, Wang S, Yang D. The effect of mechanical force in genitourinary malignancies. Expert Rev Anticancer Ther 2021; 22:53-64. [PMID: 34726963 DOI: 10.1080/14737140.2022.2000864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Mechanical force is attributed to the formation of tumor blood vessels, influences cancer cell invasion and metastasis, and promotes reprogramming of the energy metabolism. Currently, therapy strategies for the tumor microenvironment are being developed progressively. The purpose of this article is to discuss the molecular mechanism, diagnosis, and treatment of mechanical force in urinary tract cancers and outline the medications used in the mechanical microenvironment. AREAS COVERED This review covers the complex mechanical elements in the microenvironment of urinary system malignancies, focusing on mechanical molecular mechanisms for diagnosis and treatment. EXPERT OPINION The classification of various mechanical forces, such as matrix stiffness, shear force, and other forces, is relatively straightforward. However, little is known about the molecular process of mechanical forces in urinary tract malignancies. Because mechanical therapy is still controversial, it is critical to understand the molecular basis of mechanical force before adding mechanical therapy solutions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Huang
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Junqiang Liu
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Qiwei Chen
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.,School of Information Science and Technology, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian City, China
| | - Dan Feng
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Haotian Wu
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Abdullah Aldanakh
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Yuli Jian
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Glycobiology, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Zhongyang Xu
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Glycobiology, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Shujing Wang
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Glycobiology, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
| | - Deyong Yang
- Department of Urology, First Affifiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China
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