Authors (total 1517) bold: presenting authors Abraham Kaipparettu ...

Shamci Monajembashi, Birgit Perner, Karl Otto Greulich
Calcium waves induced by optical tweezers - manipulation of
cardiomyocytes and fibroblast
Mechanical properties of cells often reflect their health status (for example in cancer) but
their biomechanical interactions are also often coupled with subseqent signal
transduction. Such properties can be measured with mechanical microtools or using
optical stretchers. We have developed a technique based on optical tweezers (Erythrocye
Mediated Force Application, EMFA) which allows to apply forces to cells in a very gentle
and quantitative way. We use EMFA to show, that calcium waves can be induced not
only in excitable cardiomyocytes but also in putatively non -excitable fibroblasts. In
reconstituted tissue, it is sufficient to excite one single cell in order to obtain calcium
waves over the whole tissue.
Literature
Perner, S.Monajembashi, A.Rapp, L.Wollweber, K.O.Greulich (2004) Proceedings of SPIE
5514, 179 - 188: Simulation of heart infarction by laser microbeam and induction of
arrythmias by optical tweezers
contact:
Prof. Dr. Karl Otto Greulich
IMB Jena
kog@imb-jena.de
Beutenbergstr. 11
07745 Jena (D)