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Elastic free energy drives the shape of prevascular solid tumors

  • It is well established that the mechanical environment influences cell functions in health and disease. Here, we address how the mechanical environment influences tumor growth, in particular, the shape of solid tumors. In an in vitro tumor model, which isolates mechanical interactions between cancer tumor cells and a hydrogel, we find that tumors grow as ellipsoids, resembling the same, oft-reported observation of in vivo tumors. Specifically, an oblate ellipsoidal tumor shape robustly occurs when the tumors grow in hydrogels that are stiffer than the tumors, but when they grow in more compliant hydrogels they remain closer to spherical in shape. Using large scale, nonlinear elasticity computations we Show that the oblate ellipsoidal shape minimizes the elastic free energy of the tumor-hydrogel system. Having eliminated a number of other candidate explanations, we hypothesize that minimization of the elastic free energy is the reason for predominance of the experimentally observed ellipsoidal shape. This result may hold significance for explaining the shape progressio.

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Metadaten
Author of HS ReutlingenKemkemer, Ralf
URN:urn:nbn:de:bsz:rt2-opus4-780
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0103245
ISSN:1932-6203
Erschienen in:PLOS ONE
Publisher:PLOS
Place of publication:Lawrence, Kanada
Document Type:Journal article
Language:English
Publication year:2014
Volume:9
Issue:7
Page Number:8
First Page:1
Last Page:7
DDC classes:610 Medizin, Gesundheit
Open access?:Ja
Licence (German):License Logo  Creative Commons - Namensnennung