Cell adaptability study

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden have developed a new method to study single cells while exposing them to controlled environmental changes.

The method uses a set of laser tweezers to move the cell around in a microscopic channel system, allowing the researchers to study how single cells react to stress induced by a constantly changing environment.

Studies on how cells react to changes in their environment, such as reduced availability of nutrients, have traditionally used cultures consisting of millions of cells.

While such studies show how cells react on average to a new environment, they say nothing about individual variation, for example how quickly a single cell responds.

Emma Eriksson and her colleagues at the University of Gothenburg's department of physics developed a method where laser tweezers are used to catch a cell of about 1um in size, and then move the cell between different environments.

Placing the cell in a system of channels made of silicone, in which each channel is finer than a human hair, enables the researchers to add and remove substances so that the environment surrounding a single cell changes in a split second.