SOFT POLYMER-BASED CANTILEVER PROBE FOR AFM NANOINDENTATION OF LIVE MAMMALIAN CELLS IN LIQUID

摘要

A soft Poly(Methyl-Meth-Acrylate)(PMMA)-polymer-based V-shaped cantilever probe is proposed for atomic force microscopy (AFM), and the first well-functioning, visually-flat prototype fabricated using a simple, but novel low-cost process and bio-compatible materials is demonstrated. With the prototype, for the first time, AFM nanoindentation was performed on live mammalian cells-human cervical adenocarcinoma cells in liquid. Results obtained using the prototype were compared to those obtained using a commercial Si_3N_4 cantilever probe. Minimal or no versus severe deformation and/or distortion of the cell membrane was observed when using the prototype versus the Si_3N_4 probe.