Coupled nucleoplasmic flows and envelope expansion govern the mechanical resistance of the nucleus

Abstract

In recent year, it became clear that the cell nucleus can undergo large deformations, during immune cell migration and tumor growth. These deformations generate signals that allow cells to sense their environment and adapt to it. How cells cope with and respond to large deformations thus strongly depends on the nuclear mechanics, but our understanding of the physical properties of the nucleus remains incomplete. In particular, it is not clear how the nuclear volume responds to deformation. Here we combine controlled confinement assays, high-resolution imaging and atomic force microscopy with theoretical modelling to propose a physical model of the cell nucleus that accounts for its surface and bulk properties and addresses both steady-state and transient regimes. Our results establish the nucleus as a poroelastic body in which mechanics are dominated by the envelope and dynamics by the chromatin, and suggest that regulating water permeability may be as important as softening the envelope for cells migrating rapidly through dense tissues.