Water fluxes through aquaporin-9 prime epithelial cells for rapid wound healing

► Aquaporin-9 facilitates both single cell and multi-cellular migration. ► The mechanism for augmented single cell migration relies on facilitated shape changes. ► Aquaporin-9 increases the cellular density in the monolayer. ► The monolayer tightness is strengthened upon aquaporin-9 expression. ► The mechanism for facilitated wound healing is proposed to rely on monolayer swelling.