The Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) 2 articles published in JoVE Developmental Biology Direct Force Measurements of Subcellular Mechanics in Confinement using Optical Tweezers Frederic Català-Castro1, Valeria Venturini2,3, Santiago Ortiz-Vásquez1, Verena Ruprecht2,4, Michael Krieg1 1Neurophotonics and Mechanical Systems Biology, Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, ICFO, 2Center for Genomic Regulation (CRG), The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, 3Institut de Ciències Fotòniques, ICFO, 4Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) Here, we present a protocol to investigate the intracellular mechanical properties of isolated embryonic zebrafish cells in three-dimensional confinement with direct force measurement by an optical trap. Neuroscience Using a Microfluidics Device for Mechanical Stimulation and High Resolution Imaging of C. elegans Holger Fehlauer*1, Adam L. Nekimken*1,2, Anna A. Kim1,2, Beth L. Pruitt1,2,3, Miriam B. Goodman1,2, Michael Krieg4 1Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University, 2Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 3Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, 4Group of Neurophotonics and Mechanical Systems Biology, The Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) New tools for mechanobiology research are needed to understand how mechanical stress activates biochemical pathways and elicits biological responses. Here, we showcase a new method for selective mechanical stimulation of immobilized animals with a microfluidic trap allowing high-resolution imaging of cellular responses.
