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APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. Lett. » Volume 85 » Issue 4
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Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 880–883 (2000)

Scanning Probe-Based Frequency-Dependent Microrheology of Polymer Gels and Biological Cells

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R. E. Mahaffy1, C. K. Shih1,4, F. C. MacKintosh2, and J. Käs1,3,4
1Department of Physics, The University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712
2Department of Physics and Biophysics Research Division, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1120
3Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712
4Texas Materials Institute, University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712

Received 14 February 2000; published in the issue dated 24 July 2000

A new scanning probe-based microrheology approach is used to quantify the frequency-dependent viscoelastic behavior of both fibroblast cells and polymer gels. The scanning probe shape was modified using polystyrene beads for a defined surface area nondestructively deforming the sample. An extended Hertz model is introduced to measure the frequency-dependent storage and loss moduli even for thin cell samples. Control measurements of the polyacrylamide gels compare well with conventional rheological data. The cells show a viscoelastic signature similar to in vitro actin gels.

© 2000 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.85.880
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.85.880
PACS:
87.15.La
 
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