Cell biology

Shear force

Adhesion

Biology

Metallurgy

Materials science

Coupling (piping)

Receptor

Cell migration

Biochemistry

Integrin

Intracellular

Actin

Organic chemistry

Actin cytoskeleton

Cell adhesion

Cell adhesion molecule

Cytoskeleton

Composite material

Chemistry

Cell

Biophysics

Transmembrane protein

Nature

Eukaryotic cells migrate by coupling the intracellular force of the actin cytoskeleton to the environment. While force coupling is usually mediated by transmembrane adhesion receptors, especially those of the integrin family, amoeboid cells such as leukocytes can migrate extremely fast despite very low adhesive forces1. Here we show that leukocytes cannot only migrate under low adhesion but can also transmit forces in the complete absence of transmembrane force coupling. When confined within three-dimensional environments, they use the topographical features of the substrate to propel themselves. Here the retrograde flow of the actin cytoskeleton follows the texture of the substrate, creating retrograde shear forces that are sufficient to drive the cell body forwards. Notably, adhesion-dependent and adhesion-independent migration are not mutually exclusive, but rather are variants of the same principle of coupling retrograde actin flow to the environment and thus can potentially operate interchangeably and simultaneously. As adhesion-free migration is independent of the chemical composition of the environment, it renders cells completely autonomous in their locomotive behaviour. Within three-dimensional environments, leukocytes can migrate even in the complete absence of adhesive forces using the topographical features of the substrate to propel themselves.

Cellular locomotion using environmental topography