Photoactivatable surfaces resolve the impact of gravity vector on collective cell migratory characteristics.

Despite considerable interest in the impact of space travel on human health, the influence of the gravity vector on collective cell migration remains unclear. This is primarily because of the difficulty in inducing collective migration, where cell clusters appear in an inverted position against gravity, without cellular damage. In this study, photoactivatable surfaces were used to overcome this challenge. Photoactivatable surfaces enable the formation of geometry-controlled cellular clusters and the remote induction of cellular migration via photoirradiation, thereby maintaining the cells in the inverted position. Substrate inversion preserved the circularity of cellular clusters compared to cells in the normal upright position, with less leader cell appearance. Furthermore, the inversion of cells against the gravity vector resulted in the remodeling of the cytoskeletal system via the strengthening of external actin bundles. Within the 3D cluster architecture, enhanced accumulation of active myosin was observed in the upper cell-cell junction, with a flattened apical surface. Depending on the gravity vector, attenuating actomyosin activity correlates with an increase in the number of leader cells, indicating the importance of cell contractility in collective migration phenotypes and cytoskeletal remodeling.