Cell-cell interactions. A physical approach

Cell-cell interactions are involved in a large variety of biological phenomena: cellular aggregation, segregation and adhesion to a solid substrate, contact inhibition, immune recognition, cell fusion, etc. Cell-cell interactions are mainly determined by the composition and structure of their peripheries, but also by the physicochemical parameters of their microenvironment. The physical forces involved in cell-cell interactions are considered to be electrostatic, electrodynamic (van der Waals') and very short-range hydration forces. Long-range electrostatic forces can yield a slightly specific character, so that a completely random Brownian motion of the cells can be transformed into an initial phase of a ''docking manoeuvre'', which may favour specific interactions between suspended cells in a culture medium.