A reliable replacement of the Olympus®* AC160 –
Optimized Positioning with Maximum AFM Tip Visibility
NanoWorld AG is pleased to introduce the new Arrow-ACR AFM probe, developed to provide research professionals worldwide with a dependable alternative to the discontinued Olympus®* AC160 microcantilever.
The Arrow™ ACR (typical resonance frequency 300 kHz, typical force constant 26 N/m), combines identical mechanical properties as the
Olympus®* AC160 with the well-known Arrow AFM tip and cantilever geometry. Always positioned exactly at the end of the AFM cantilever, this AFM probe offers easy positioning of the AFM tip over the area of interest.
With their moderate stiffness (typical force constant 26 N/m) the Arrow™ ACR probes are particularly suitable for studying relatively soft materials, including various polymers. These AFM probes are designed to perform optimally in non-contact/Tapping™ mode in air, enabling detailed characterization of thin films, coatings, surface roughness, and localized defects.
Users can expect stable operation, high sensitivity and high-speed scanning capabilities, ensuring reproducible data across a wide range of applications.
For researchers seeking a seamless transition from the discontinued
Olympus®* AC160, the NanoWorld® Arrow™ ACR offers a reliable solution backed by NanoWorld’s manufacturing precision and quality control.
A reliable replacement of the Olympus®* AC160 – NanoWorld introduces new Arrow-ACR Silicon AFM probe Optimized Positioning with Maximum AFM Tip Visibility
NanoWorld AG CEO Manfred Detterbeck will be at the NanoAndMore Japan booth at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society of Japan held from September 24– 26, 2025 at Nara Prefectural Convention Center. Will we meet you there too?
Meet you at the NanoAndMore Japan booth at Nara Prefectural Convention Center next week
Gastric cancer has a high rate of recurrence, and as such, immunotherapy strategies are being investigated as a potential therapeutic strategy. *
Although the involvement of immune checkpoints in immunotherapy is well studied, biomechanical cues, such as target cell stiffness, have not yet been subject to the same level of investigation. *
Changes in the cholesterol content of the cell membrane directly influence tumor cell stiffness. *
In the article “Cholesterol-regulated cellular stiffness may enhance evasion of NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity in gastric cancer stem cells” Lijuan Zhu and Hongjin Wang investigate the effect of cholesterol on NK cell-mediated killing of gastric cancer stem-like cells. *
They report that surviving tumor cells with stem-like properties elevated cholesterol metabolism to evade NK cell cytotoxicity. *
Inhibition of cholesterol metabolism enhances NK cell-mediated killing of gastric cancer stem-like cells, highlighting a potential avenue for improving immunotherapy efficacy. *
This study suggests a possible effect of cancer cell stiffness on immune evasion and offers insights into enhancing immunotherapeutic strategies against tumors. *
Measurement of cell stiffness by AFM:
A customized commercially available atomic force microscope (AFM) and NanoWorld Pyrex-NitridePNP-TR AFM probes were used for the measurement of cell stiffness by AFM. *
Atomic force microscopy cell stiffness was measured according to standard methodology. *
AFM force curves were captured with a customized AFM placed atop an inverted optical microscope that had a heating stage for live-cell imaging and a ×20 objective. Using an XY stage, the materials were moved until the desired cell, which could be observed under an optical microscope, was positioned beneath the AFM tip. Using a NanoWorld PNP-TR-B AFM cantilever (NanoWorld), the force curves on the cell were collected at a rate of ~ 5 μm·s−1 in the relative trigger mode (15 nm trigger threshold). *
By utilizing a thermal tuning and the deflection sensitivity of 170 nm·V−1, the AFM cantilever spring constant was determined to be 0.08 N·m−1. *
Single cells were measured both before and after treatment at 37 °C. The force curves were processed using the AFM’s analysis software, which also computed the Young’s modulus of the sample. This was accomplished by fitting the approach curve to an indentation of less than 500 nm (to account for stiffness) and assuming a cortical Poisson’s ratio of 0.3.*
NanoWorld Pyrex-Nitride AFM probe series – AFM tip and AFM cantilever made of silicon nitride
*Lijuan Zhu and Hongjin Wang Cholesterol-regulated cellular stiffness may enhance evasion of NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity in gastric cancer stem cells
FEBS Open Bio, Volume 14, Issue 5, May 2024, Pages 855-866
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/2211-5463.13793
Open Access The article “Cholesterol-regulated cellular stiffness may enhance evasion of NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity in gastric cancer stem cells” by Lijuan Zhu and Hongjin Wang is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
