Cells “feel” how crowded they are using the membrane potential
How does a cell know when there is enough space to grow, or when it is too crowded to keep dividing? A new study published in Cell reveals that cells answer this question using a surprisingly simple physical signal: electricity.
Researchers discovered that cells measure how dense or crowded they are by sensing the pressure via the membrane potential. When cells are squeezed by their neighbours, their internal contents become more concentrated. Basic physical principles dictate how this change automatically alters the cell’s membrane potential — the tiny electrical voltage across the cell’s outer surface. Cells then “read” this voltage like a gauge. When the membrane potential reaches certain levels, it signals the cell whether conditions are right for growth or whether it should stop dividing. In other words, cells turn physical pressure into an electrical signal and then use that signal to make decisions.
The work reveals that cells do not just rely on chemical messages — they also process information using basic physical principles. By combining experiments with simulations, this collaborative research from Harvard Medical School and Forschungszentrum Jülich demonstrates how living cells use physics to sense their environment and control their behaviour.
Original publication:
Avik Mukherjee, Yanqing Huang, Jens Elgeti, Seungeun Oh, Jose G. Abreu, Leander Ammar, Anjali R. Nelikat, Jannik Schüttler, Dan-Dan Su, Christophe Dupre, Nina Catherine Benites, Xili Liu, Leonid Peshkin, Mihail Barboiu, Hugo Stocker, Marc W. Kirschner, and Markus Basan:
Membrane potential mediates the cellular response to mechanical pressure
Cell 189, 143-160, 2026.
DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.11.004
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