[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-369659-105":59,"doc-detail-369659-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","ecm-mechanics-control-jamming-to-unjamming-transition-of-cancer-cells-review","ECM Mechanics Control Jamming-to-Unjamming Transition of Cancer Cells - review","","Cancer metastasis is a multifactorial process that frustrates therapeutic strategies. Biochemical signals for motile phenotypes are well characterized, while mechanobiological coupling has only recently entered cancer cell motility models and remains incompletely understood. This review explains how mechanobiologically and biochemically controlled EMT relates to a newer “jamming-to-unjamming transition” theory. It emphasizes mechanobiology and extracellular microenvironmental factors, including ECM confinement and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and compares both transitions while outlining research frontiers.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":35,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/ecm-mechanics-control-jamming-to-unjamming-transition-of-cancer-cells-review/369659/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/ecm-mechanics-control-jamming-to-unjamming-transition-of-cancer-cells-review/369659.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Đào","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-29","2026-09-23",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":52},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What key mechanistic gap motivates the jamming-to-unjamming transition concept?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"The review highlights insufficient mechanistic understanding of how, when, and why cells embedded in dense epithelial layers remain stationary or mobilize, and how these behaviors emerge in tissue contexts.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"How does the paper compare jamming-to-unjamming with EMT?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"It states that despite initial appearances, the two transitions are quite separate, and it discusses whether and how they might act synergistically, while comparing their mechanobiological drivers.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"Which tumor microenvironment factors are discussed as influencing the jamming-to-unjamming transition?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"The review discusses the impact of the tumor microenvironment, including ECM scaffold and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), as well as mechanobiological and extracellular environmental aspects.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},369659,1790342545,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":52,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145},1374402968488,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0","Review  \nECM Mechanics Control Jamming-to-Unjamming Transition of Cancer Cells  \nClaudia Tanja Mierke   \nAcademic Editors: Maurizio Onisto, Valentina Masola, Marco Franchi and Birgit Leitinger  \nReceived: 8 May 2025  \nRevised: 5 June 2025  \nAccepted: 18 June 2025  \nPublished: 20 June 2025  \nCitation: Mierke, C.T. ECM Mechanics Control Jamming-toUnjamming Transition of Cancer Cells. Cells 2025, 14, 943. [https://doi.org/](https://doi.org/)[ ](https://doi.org/)[10.3390/cells14130943](10.3390/cells14130943)  \nCopyright: © 2025 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ([https://creativecommons.org/](https://creativecommons.org/)[ ](https://creativecommons.org/)[licenses/by/4.0/](licenses/by/4.0/)) .  \nFaculty of Physics and Earth System Sciences, Peter Debye Institute of Soft Matter Physics, Biological Physics Division, Leipzig University, 04109 Leipzig, Germany; [claudia.mierke@uni-leipzig.de](claudia.mierke@uni-leipzig.de)  \nAbstract  \nCancer metastasis constitutes a multifactorial phenomenon that continues to confound therapeutic strategies. The biochemical signals governing motile phenotypes have been extensively characterized, but mechanobiological interactions have only recently been integrated into cancer cell motility models and remain less well elucidated. The identification of the biochemically and mechanically controlled epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) of cancer cells, which occurs either completely or partially, has led to a major breakthrough and a universal phenomenon in cancers. In addition, a relatively new theory based on mechanobiological aspects called “jamming-to-unjamming transition” is being proposed to explain the transition of cancer cells to an invasive phenotype. The latter transition may help to better understand the different types of 3D migration and invasion of cancer cells. Similarly to EMT, the transition from jamming to unjamming seems to be controlled by molecular and physical factors, including cell mechanics and mechanical cues from the extracellular matrix (ECM) of the tumor microenvironment (TME) . It is challenging to grasp the distinctions between the transition from jamming to unjamming and EMT, as they appear to be the same at first glance. However, upon closer examination, the two transitions are quite separate. Moreover, it is still unclear whether both transitions may act synergistically. This review highlights the most important breakthroughs in the transition from jamming to unjamming, with a focus on mechanobiology and extracellular environmental aspects, and it compares them with those of EMT. In addition, the impact of the TME, such as ECM scaffold and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) on the jamming-to-unjamming transition is discussed. Finally, the research frontiers and future directions in the field of mechanobiological research in cancer metastasis are outlined.  \nKeywords: cell and tissue mechanics; EMT; viscoelasticity; jamming-to-unjamming transition; extracellular matrix confinement; mechanobiology; individual and collective migration and invasion; stiffness  \n1. Introduction to Jamming-to-Unjamming Transition in Cancer  \nSolid tumors are intricate multicellular entities that can be regarded as ecosystems in which cancer cells establish heterotypic interactions with adjacent cells and their wider microenvironment [1–5] . These intricate crosstalk mechanisms of cells and their surroundings govern the rate of proliferation, the persistence of tumors, and the phenotypes of cell migration [1,4–9] . Cancer cell motility can be elicited through biochemical cues emanating from the microenvironment, involving growth factors, such as TGF-β, fibroblast growth factors (FGF), and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), and cytokine release, which permit cancer cells to break away from the primary tumor [10–12] . Biochemical and structural cu","cbCair0CggqbxFOv","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCair0CggqbxFOv","pdf",1623889,51,"English","# Abstract\n# Keywords\n# Introduction to Jamming-to-Unjamming Transition in Cancer\n## Cancer as an ecosystem and multicellular crosstalk\n## Biochemical cues and collective vs individual migration\n## Mechanistic gap and collective jamming behavior\n## EMT and the need for physical understanding","[{\"question\":\"What key mechanistic gap motivates the jamming-to-unjamming transition concept?\",\"answer\":\"The review highlights insufficient mechanistic understanding of how, when, and why cells embedded in dense epithelial layers remain stationary or mobilize, and how these behaviors emerge in tissue contexts.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the paper compare jamming-to-unjamming with EMT?\",\"answer\":\"It states that despite initial appearances, the two transitions are quite separate, and it discusses whether and how they might act synergistically, while comparing their mechanobiological drivers.\"},{\"question\":\"Which tumor microenvironment factors are discussed as influencing the jamming-to-unjamming transition?\",\"answer\":\"The review discusses the impact of the tumor microenvironment, including ECM scaffold and cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), as well as mechanobiological and extracellular environmental aspects.\"}]","ECM Mechanics Control Jamming-to-Unjamming Transition of Cancer Cells - review | PDF",1790183957,129]