Mechanical stimulation is crucial for regulating corneal stromal fibroblast (CF) behavior, yet most existing studies have applied mechanical forces at macroscopic scales. Investigations into compressive stimulation, particularly with high spatial precision at the single-cell level, remain scarce. To address this, we have developed a noncontact mechanical stimulation platform using MEMS technology. By employing GHz piezoelectric acoustic streaming, this platform generates focused fluid jets capable of delivering compressive stimulation with micrometer resolution and tunable force magnitude. Both experimental measurements and finite element simulations confirmed precise control over the compressive force applied. Using this system, we have systematically analyzed CF responses to varying compressive force levels. Key findings reveal a force-dependent biphasic regulation: low-intensity stimulation enhances cell viability and upregulated COL1A1 expression, whereas high-intensity stimulation induces apoptosis, disrupts F-actin cytoskeletal organization, and elevates MMP2 expression. Notably, LOX expression is consistently upregulated across all force levels, indicating extracellular matrix (ECM) reinforcement. This study demonstrates that localized compressive forces applied via a microscale acoustic streaming platform dynamically modulate CF behavior and ECM remodeling. The platform’s ability to apply highly localized, noncontact compression provides a novel tool for corneal mechanobiology, unveiling multilayered cellular responses to compressive stimulation and offering new insights into how the mechanical microenvironment regulates corneal cell function at the cellular level.
Yang et al. (Wed,) studied this question.