Monitoring\nPartial EMT Dynamics through Cell Mechanics\nUsing Scanning Ion Conductance Microscopy

Tumor\ncells undergo an epithelial-mesenchymal transition\n(EMT)\naccompanied by a reduction in elasticity to initiate metastasis. However, <i>in vivo</i>, tumor cells typically exhibit partial EMT rather\nthan fully EMT. Whether cell mechanics can accurately identify the\nstatus of partial EMT, especially the dynamic process, remains unclear.\nTo elucidate the relationship between cell mechanics and partial EMT,\nwe employed scanning ion conductance microscopy (SICM) to analyze\nthe dynamic changes in cell mechanics during the TGFβ-induced\npartial EMT of HCT116 colon cancer cells. Cells undergoing partial\nEMT, characterized by increased expression of EMT transcription factors, <i>Snai1</i> and <i>Zeb1</i>, and EMT-related genes, <i>Fn1</i> and <i>MMP9</i>, while retaining the expression\nof the epithelial markers <i>E</i>-<i>cadherin</i> (<i>E</i>-<i>cad</i>) and <i>EpCAM</i>, did not exhibit significant changes in cell morphology, suggesting\nthat morphological changes alone were inadequate for identifying partial\nEMT status. However, cell elasticity markedly decreased in partial\nEMT cells, and this reduction was reversed with the reversible transition\nof partial EMT. These findings suggest a strong correlation between\ncell mechanics and the dynamic process of partial EMT, indicating\nthat cell mechanics could serve as a valuable label-free marker for\nidentifying the status of partial EMT while preserving the physiological\ncharacteristics of tumor cells.