Linear microrheology with optical tweezers of living cells 'is not an option'!

Abstract

Optical tweezers have been successfully adopted as exceptionally sensitive transducers for microrheology studies of complex fluids. Despite the general trend, in this article I explain why a similar approach should not be adopted for microrheology studies of living cells. This conclusion is acheived on the basis of statistical mechanics principles that indicate the unsuitability of optical tweezers for such purpose.