Automated characterization of amoeboid motility

Cells use a variety of methods to migrate. One of these, referred to as amoeboid motion, involves alternating cycles of morphological expansion and retraction. Employed by numerous mammalian cell lines including neutrophils and lymphocytes, it is also seen in the metastatic migration of some tumor cells. Amoeboid motility is best understood in the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum. It is a complex cellular process driven by highly-organized cytoskeletal dynamics containing numerous molecular species and regulated by an intricate signaling network. An important aspect of studying is to understand how the roles played by these molecules and signaling pathways are integrated. And a widely used approach is to characterize phenotype-specific morphological dynamics among various types of cells.