Quantification of fast molecular adhesion by fluorescence footprinting

Abstract

Rolling adhesion is a unique process in which the adhesion events are short-lived and operate under highly nonequilibrium conditions. These characteristics pose a challenge in molecular force quantification, where in situ measurement of these forces cannot be achieved with molecular force sensors that probe near equilibrium. Here, we demonstrated a quantitative adhesion footprint assay combining DNA-based nonequilibrium force probes and modeling to measure the molecular force involved in fast rolling adhesion. We were able to directly profile the ensemble molecular force distribution in our system during rolling adhesion with a dynamic range between 0 and 18 pN. Our results showed that the shear stress driving bead rolling motility directly controls the molecular tension on the probe-conjugated adhesion complex. Furthermore, the shear stress can steer the dissociation bias of components within the molecular force probe complex, favoring either DNA probe dissociation or receptor-ligand dissociation.