Speaker
Description
Cancer metastasis critically depends on cell migration through physically confined and flow-driven microenvironments. In this study, we investigate breast cancer cell migration in a microfluidic platform that mimics a heterogeneous, collagen-coated constriction network under interstitial flow. Migration of MDA-MB-231 cells in a two-dimensional network of micron-scale pores was compared with migration in an unconstrained microchannel. Confinement reduced average migration speed and prolonged superdiffusive motion, while transient increases in velocity were observed during passage through constrictions. The effect of interstitial flow was examined across multiple flow rates, revealing enhanced migration speed, directional bias along streamlines, and persistent superdiffusive behavior under flow. Numerical simulations confirmed heterogeneous velocity and shear stress distributions within the network. These findings highlight how geometric confinement and fluid flow jointly regulate cancer cell migration in microfluidic environments, with implications for understanding physical mechanisms underlying metastatic invasion.