This image is a photo collage combining different images showing the skeleton structure of pancreatic cancer cell lines on a black background. The yellow/red color indicates the cells’ skeleton structure. With such images we can record and analyze the arrangement and changes of the skeleton in different cell types and upon cell perturbation.

We are studying the effect of differential protein levels of the oncogene, Kras, on the cells’ properties such as migration, adhesion and skeleton arrangement. In the images shown in this collage, we imaged the skeleton of pancreatic cancer cell lines exhibiting low levels of Kras. Here the skeleton appears very spiky, with tight bundles. The skeletons from cells with high levels look very different. With such an experiment we could show that different levels of Kras affect the arrangement and shape of the cells’ skeleton.