Stress distribution in contractile cell monolayers

Abstract

Collective behaviors in cellular systems are regulated not only by biochemical signalling pathways but also by intercellular mechanical forces, whose quantification in contractile monolayers remains poorly understood. Here, by integrating traction force microscopy and numerical simulations, we reconstruct the stress distribution in C2C12 myoblast monolayers to reveal the roles of local mechanical forces in determining the collective cellular structures. We find that contractile monolayers exhibit positive maximum and negative minimum principal stresses, reflecting the intrinsic anisotropy of active tension. Distinct stress patterns emerge around topological defects, coinciding with singularities in cell alignment, density, and morphology, indicating a strong coupling between mechanical forces and structural organization. Moreover, tensile stresses are preferentially transmitted along the cell elongation axis and compressive stresses transversely, demonstrating that local stress guides cell arrangement. This mechanical guidance appears to be universal among contractile systems, as observed also in bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells. Together, our work establishes a quantitative framework for characterizing mechanical anisotropy in active cellular monolayers and reveals a general principle of force-structure coupling, providing a physical basis for understanding how mechanics governs myogenesis, morphogenesis, and collective organization in contractile cellular systems.