Atomic Force Mechanobiology of Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes PLOS ONE Liu, J., Sun, N., Bruce, M. A., Wu, J. C., Butte, M. J. 2012; 7 (5)

Abstract

We describe a method using atomic force microscopy (AFM) to quantify the mechanobiological properties of pluripotent, stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes, including contraction force, rate, duration, and cellular elasticity. We measured beats from cardiomyocytes derived from induced pluripotent stem cells of healthy subjects and those with dilated cardiomyopathy, and from embryonic stem cell lines. We found that our AFM method could quantitate beat forces of single cells and clusters of cardiomyocytes. We demonstrate the dose-responsive, inotropic effect of norepinephrine and beta-adrenergic blockade of metoprolol. Cardiomyocytes derived from subjects with dilated cardiomyopathy showed decreased force and decreased cellular elasticity compared to controls. This AFM-based method can serve as a screening tool for the development of cardiac-active pharmacological agents, or as a platform for studying cardiomyocyte biology.

View details for DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0037559

View details for Web of Science ID 000305343500135

View details for PubMedID 22624048

View details for PubMedCentralID PMC3356329