title: Measuring the elastic properties of living cells by the atomic force microscope.
abstract: In this chapter I discussed the possibility of measuring elastic properties of living cells by AFM. One reason for using the AFM for this purpose is its ability to both measure locally the mechanics of a cell and to distinguish different regions of the cell. Since the AFM can be operated under physiological conditions cellular processes can be followed, for example, cytokinesis and the investigation of the migration of cells.
authors.affiliation: Drittes Physics Institute, Georg-August Universität, 37073 Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Radmacher
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000502:physiology; D002468:Cell Physiological Phenomena; D002477:Cells / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004548:Elasticity; D008433:Mathematics; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D000199:Actins