Cellular Mechanics and Interactions

Investigating the coupled effects of stiffness and stretch on the trabecular meshwork cells using a hydrogel-integrated microfluidic system

This study investigates how stiffness and stretch affect trabecular meshwork cells using a microfluidic system, finding that glaucomatous cells show distinct mechanotransduction issues under combined mechanical stress.

Volume and surface methods for microparticle traction force microscopy: a computational and experimental comparison

This paper compares volume and surface methods for microparticle traction force microscopy through simulations and experiments, finding the surface method more accurate but with reduced performance at high noise levels.

Fibrotic substrate stiffness enhances endometriotic epithelial cell motility

This study shows that fibrotic substrate stiffness increases endometriotic epithelial cell motility by enhancing speed, actin stress fibers, and spheroid expansion.

Heart-On-a-Chip with Integrated Ultrasoft Mechanosensors for Continuous Measurement of Cell- and Tissue-scale Contractile Stresses

This paper introduces a heart-on-a-chip platform with ultrasoft mechanosensors to measure cell- and tissue-scale contractile stresses, showing that ECM composition affects contractility and drug responses.

Adaptive cytoskeletal responses to extracellular environment viscosity modulate cell migration

This study develops a mechanobiological model to show how extracellular viscosity affects cancer cell migration through actin dynamics and adhesion, revealing a biphasic response and migration memory.

Inverse modeling unveils governing law of mechano-chemical dynamics of epithelial migration

The paper develops a machine-learning framework to infer governing equations of mechano-chemical dynamics in epithelial migration from live-cell imaging data, revealing cell-cell heterogeneity in migratory rules.

Focal adhesion prevention on nanoparticle substrates upregulates stemness gene expression in primary melanocytes

This study shows that culturing primary melanocytes on nanoparticle substrates reduces focal adhesions and increases stemness gene expression while decreasing differentiation markers.

Circumferential actomyosin bundles drive endothelial cell deformations to constrict blood vessels

This study identifies circumferential actomyosin bundles as drivers of endothelial cell deformations that regulate vessel diameter and prevent vascular malformations.

Genetically engineered ESC-derived embryos reveal Vinculin-dependent force responses required for mammalian neural tube closure

The paper shows that Vinculin is essential for maintaining cell adhesion during cranial neural tube closure in mouse embryos under mechanical stress.

Spectrin coordinates cell shape and signaling essential for epidermal differentiation

This study identifies spectrin as a key organizer of the keratinocyte actomyosin cortex that coordinates cell shape and signaling during epidermal differentiation.

Discrete viscoelastic model of deformable immune cell migration through confined tumor microchannels

This study develops a discrete viscoelastic model to simulate immune cell migration through confined microchannels, showing how cellular stiffness affects migration efficiency.

Prediction of Piconewton Receptor Tension Images using Deep Learning

This paper introduces TensionDL, a deep learning model that predicts pN receptor tension maps from cell morphology and vinculin images, validated across cell types and substrate stiffnesses.

An interplay between cytoplasmic flow and cell morphology during cytokinesis simulated by the moving-particle semi-implicit method

The paper simulates cytokinesis by modeling cytoplasmic flow and cortical elasticity interactions, showing spindle-driven flow creates a pressure minimum that initiates cleavage furrow formation.

Development of a displacement-controlled uniaxial-strain bioreactor for high-throughput, dynamic in vitro cell culture

The paper develops a bioreactor for dynamic in vitro cell culture, validated for osteoblasts, enabling tensile strain application in a high-throughput setup.

Sensing the shape of a surface by intracellular filaments

This paper develops a biophysical model to explain how MreB filaments localize to curved surfaces in bacteria, showing that their curvature preference is governed by mean and Gaussian curvatures.

Control of lumen geometry and topology by the interplay between pressure and cell proliferation rate in pancreatic organoids

The paper investigates how lumen morphology in pancreatic organoids is controlled by the balance between cell proliferation rate and lumen pressure, showing that lower pressure and faster proliferation lead to more complex lumen shapes.

Learning Epithelial Elasticity via Local Tension Remodeling

This paper introduces a vertex model of epithelial tissues with a mechanosensitive tension-remodeling rule, showing how tissues store mechanical memory and adapt their properties through learning-like processes.

Continuum theory for the mechanics of curved epithelial shells by coarse-graining an ensemble of active gel cellular surfaces

The paper develops a continuum theory for curved epithelial shells by coarse-graining a 3D vertex model of active gel cellular surfaces, showing its accuracy in capturing buckling dynamics and the necessity of Cosserat theory for apicobasal tension asymmetry.

Endothelial cell stiffness and type drive the formation of biomechanically-induced transcellular pores

This study shows that endothelial cell stiffness and type influence biomechanically-induced transcellular pore formation in Schlemms canal cells.

Packing-Driven Mechanotransduction: local crowding overrides adhesion and stiffness cues for YAP Activation in Cellular Collectives

This study shows that local cell packing fraction, not adhesion or stiffness, drives YAP activation in multicellular collectives, independent of single-cell mechanisms.

Confinement prevents postmenopausal osteoporosis and obesity via nuclear mechanical remodeling

This study shows mechanical confinement of BMSCs on soft substrates prevents PMOP and obesity by enhancing osteogenesis and reducing adipogenesis through nuclear mechanotransduction.

Spectrin condensates provide a nidus for assembling the periodic axonal structure

The paper shows spectrin condensates facilitate the formation of the periodic axonal structure by acting as local assembly hubs that later develop into a stable lattice.

Actin and vimentin jointly control cell viscoelasticity and compression stiffening

This study identifies the distinct and combined roles of actin and vimentin in determining cell viscoelasticity and compression stiffening using mouse embryonic fibroblasts.

Stiffness and Viscoelasticity of Adipose Tissue Decellularized Extracellular Matrix Hydrogels Influence Proliferation, Growth Pattern, Migration and Invasion of Breast Cancer Cells

This study shows that the stiffness and viscoelasticity of adipose tissue-derived hydrogels affect breast cancer cell proliferation, growth, migration, and invasion.

Biomimetic fractal topography enhances podocyte maturation in vitro

This study shows that biomimetic fractal topography improves podocyte maturation in vitro by enhancing marker expression, cell polarity, and ECM remodeling via YAP signaling.

MechanoMR microparticle (M3) sensors reveal dynamic stress loading as a driver of epithelial-mesenchymal transition

The paper introduces M3 sensors to measure tissue stress dynamics and shows that abrupt stress increases drive epithelial-mesenchymal transition in cancer.

Non-destructive assessment of multi-material micro-tissue mechanics reveals the critical role of rigidity gradients in tumour growth and pressure

This paper develops a method to assess micro-tissue mechanics non-destructively, revealing that stiffness gradients in the tumour microenvironment slow pressure increase during growth.

Sparse mesenchymal cell networks as a fluid under tension

The paper shows that sparse mesenchymal networks behave like a fluid under tension, driven by contact inhibition of locomotion, and identifies this as a new tissue behavior with implications for development and tumorigenesis.

Hybrid Scaffolds Decouple Biochemical & Biophysical Regulation of Cell Phenotype

This paper introduces hybrid scaffolds that independently control biochemical and biophysical properties to study their effects on cell phenotype, showing enhanced breast cancer cell proliferation and invasion.

Filopodome proteomics identifies CCT8 as a MYO10 interactor critical for filopodia functions

The paper identifies CCT8 as a MYO10 interactor critical for filopodia functions through proteomics and functional studies in cancer cells.