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15 April 2012

Chemical Attraction

Sustain an injury and cells will migrate rapidly to repair the wound. Other times, however, cell migration is not a force for good, such as when cells from a tumour head out to colonise body tissues. Scientists study cell migration in the hope of helping healing and curtailing cancer. It was thought that cells needed a distant source of attractive chemicals to migrate. However, when cells are placed in a tiny maze of channels full of such chemicals, they don’t just sit still, they find the shortest route out (as shown in this video). It turns out that the cells (shown in green and unstained) gobble up the chemicals in their immediate vicinity and then follow their noses to more. The small amount of fluid in the maze means cells deplete the chemicals rapidly and are drawn to the exit (top) where more are available.

Written by Ruth Williams

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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