Evaluating Young's Modulus of Single Yeast Cells Based on Compression Using an Atomic Force Microscope with a Flat Tip. (April 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chang, Di; Hirate, Takahiro; Uehara, Chihiro; Maruyama, Hisataka; Uozumi, Nobuyuki; Arai, Fumihito
• Is Part Of: Microscopy and microanalysis. Volume 27:Number 2(2021)
• Page Start: 392
• Page End: 399
• Publication Date: 2021-04
• Subjects: atomic force microscopy, -- compression, -- microfluidic chip, -- yeast cell, -- Young's modulus; Microscopy -- Periodicals; Microchemistry -- Periodicals; 502.82
• DOI: 10.1017/S1431927620024903
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1431-9276

Abstract

Abstract: Abstract : In this research, atomic force microscopy (AFM) with a flat tip cantilever is utilized to measure Young's modulus of a whole yeast cell ( Saccharomyces cerevisiae BY4741). The results acquired from AFM are similar to those obtained using a microfluidic chip compression system. The mechanical properties of single yeast cells are important parameters which can be examined using AFM. Conventional studies apply AFM with a sharp cantilever tip to indent the cell and measure the force-indentation curve, from which Young's modulus can be calculated. However, sharp tips introduce problems because the shape variation can lead to a different result and cannot represent the stiffness of the whole cell. It can lead to a lack of broader meaning when evaluating Young's modulus of yeast cells. In this report, we confirm the differences in results obtained when measuring the compression of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) bead using a commercial sharp tip versus a unique flat tip. The flat tip effectively avoids tip-derived errors, so we use this method to compress whole yeast cells and generate a force–deformation curve. We believe our proposed method is effective for evaluating Young's modulus of whole yeast cells.