Issue 6, 2024

Quantitative mechanical stimulation of GPR68 using a novel 96 well flow plugin

Abstract

Mechanosensitive proteins play a crucial role in a range of physiological processes, including hearing, tactile sensation and regulating blood flow. While previous work has demonstrated the mechanosensitivity of several proteins, the ability to apply precisely defined mechanical forces to cells in a consistent, replicable manner remains a significant challenge. In this work we present a novel 96-well plate-compatible plugin device for generating highly-controlled flow-based mechanical simulation of cells, which enables quantitative assessment of mechanosensitive protein function. The device is used to mechanically stimulate HEK 293T cells expressing the mechanosensitive protein GPR68, a G protein-coupled receptor. By assaying intracellular calcium levels during flow-based cell stimulation, we determine that GPR68 signalling is a function of the applied shear-force. As this approach is compatible with conventional cell culture plates and allows for simultaneous readout in a conventional fluorescence plate reader, this represents a valuable new tool to investigate mechanotransduction.

Graphical abstract: Quantitative mechanical stimulation of GPR68 using a novel 96 well flow plugin

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
12 Sep 2023
Accepted
11 Jän 2024
First published
30 Jän 2024

Lab Chip, 2024,24, 1616-1625

Quantitative mechanical stimulation of GPR68 using a novel 96 well flow plugin

P. Segeritz, K. Kolesnik, D. J. Scott and D. J. Collins, Lab Chip, 2024, 24, 1616 DOI: 10.1039/D3LC00767G

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