Cellular Mechanics and Interactions

Apical adhesion of meningococci controls host cell basal traction force through Ancreopodia formation

This study shows that Neisseria meningitidis uses ancreopodia to transmit mechanical forces from the apical surface to the basal extracellular matrix, altering host-cell mechanics.

Self-centering steady-state flows emerge in confined actomyosin networks

The paper shows that confined actomyosin networks generate self-centering steady-state flows that organize cellular debris into a central inclusion.

Epithelial mechanics in a three-dimensional cell vertex model with local junctional constraints

This paper develops a 3D cell vertex model with local junctional constraints to study epithelial mechanics, showing it reproduces near-zero Poisson's ratio and robust mechanical responses under disorder.

Mechanical opening of the αE-catenin M-region gates afadin condensation in cardiomyocytes

The paper shows that mechanical force opens the E-catenin M-region, enabling afadin condensate formation at high-load adherens junctions in cardiomyocytes.

Lung-mimicking click alginate-dECM model of breast cancer lung metastasis reveals the role of ECM mechanics in tumor growth dynamics and genomic instability

This study develops a tunable 3D lung-mimicking model to investigate how ECM mechanics influence tumor growth and genomic instability in breast cancer metastasis.

Actin conformation dynamics precede force generation in cytotoxic T lymphocytes

This study visualizes actin conformation dynamics in CTLs and shows they precede force generation during immune synapse formation.

Matrix Stiffness Regulates Mechanotransduction and Vascular Network Formation of hiPSC-Derived Endothelial Progenitors Encapsulated in 3D Hydrogels

This study shows that vascular network formation by hiPSC-derived endothelial progenitors in 3D hydrogels depends on matrix stiffness, contractility, and cell-induced remodeling, not just mechanotransduction.

Force generation of cardiomyocytes in engineered environments

This study shows that geometric confinement and substrate stiffness influence cardiomyocyte force generation differently, with confinement enhancing contractile stress and relaxation on physiological substrates.

Kinematically-Dominated Regime Shapes Cell Traction Force Dynamics under Osmotic Shock

This study develops a biophysical model to explain how cell traction forces change during osmotic shocks, showing that forces decrease despite increased cell size and that stiffer cells recover faster.

CaMKII generates actin bundle morphology and mechanics distinct from canonical bivalent cross-linkers

This study compares the structural and mechanical properties of actin bundles formed by CaMKII with those formed by canonical cross-linkers, revealing unique flexibility and curvature in CaMKII bundles.

Coordinated Assembly of WAVE and WASH complexes

This study identifies BRK1 and CCDC53 as key subunits in WAVE and WASH complex assembly, showing their interaction with HSBP1 and their role in regulating actin dynamics and cell migration.

Impacts of Morphology and Elasticity on Cancer Cell Deformation in Shear-flows

This paper examines how cancer cell morphology and elasticity affect deformation under shear-flow, showing morphology sets stiffness-modulated deformation patterns that influence extracellular flow dynamics and traction.

Bidirectional redistribution of actomyosin drives epithelial invagination in ascidian siphon tube morphogenesis

The paper shows bidirectional actomyosin redistribution drives epithelial invagination in ascidian siphon tube morphogenesis through apical and lateral constriction.

hMSCs for Osteocyte-like Cell Networks within Strain-Stiffening Bottlebrush Polymer Hydrogels

This study shows that strain-stiffening bottlebrush polymer hydrogels promote osteocyte-like differentiation and functional connectivity in hMSCs compared to collagen matrices.

A principal-stress rule for cell division in epithelia

The paper shows that cell division in epithelia follows a mechanical principal-stress rule rather than a geometric rule, as cells divide along their principal stress axis to relieve anisotropic stress.

Space partitioning by self-organized epithelial networks

This study shows epithelial cells self-organize into reticulate networks, revealing a conserved mechanism for space partitioning through mechanical and topological dynamics.

CAF contractility controls collagen stiffness through history-dependent competition between mechanical and proteolytic remodeling

This study shows that CAF contractility dynamically regulates collagen stiffness through competition between mechanical and proteolytic remodeling, with outcomes dependent on treatment duration.

Zyxin and LPP differ in their sensing of strained actin filaments at tricellular junctions

This study compares Zyxin and LPP's mechanoaccumulation at tricellular junctions under tension, revealing differences in their LIM domain sensing mechanisms.

StressNET: an adaptable deep-learning model for mechanical stress inference in tissues

StressNET infers intercellular mechanical stresses from tissue geometry using a Graph Neural Network, achieving state-of-the-art performance in zebrafish and Xenopus embryos.

Actin-membrane interface stress regulates Arp2/3-branched actin density during lamellipodial protrusion

The paper investigates how actin-membrane interface stress regulates Arp2/3-branched actin density during lamellipodial protrusion in response to extracellular conditions.

Paired-surface spatial mechanomics links tissue stiffness maps to spatial transcriptomics

Mechanical coupling narrows an epithelial colony before it reaches a bottleneck

The paper shows that epithelial colonies narrow before entering a bottleneck through active reorganization, not passive compression, involving E-cadherin-dependent tension and dynamic flow reversal.

Ultrastructural and Proteomic Signatures of Mechanoadaptive Fibroblast Remodeling across Microphysiological and Mesoscale Shear Platforms

This study shows sustained fluid shear stress drives a profibrotic phenotypic switch in fibroblasts across different mechanical platforms.

Balanced contractility and adhesion drive polarization in a minimal elastic actomyosin network

This paper shows that a minimal mechanical model of an actomyosin network can spontaneously polarize and move through balanced contractility and adhesion, without external cues or complex signaling.

Interactions between single actin and vimentin filaments

This study demonstrates direct mechanical interactions between single actin and vimentin filaments, independent of crosslinking proteins, and quantifies the interaction forces.

Multiple contact sites between cells and the vitelline envelope coordinate tissue flows in Drosophila gastrulation

The paper shows that integrin-mediated adhesion sites coordinate tissue flows during Drosophila gastrulation by balancing cell-intrinsic forces with spatially distributed anchoring.

EPS8 dampens the growth dynamics and prolongs the lifetime of actin-based protrusions

This study investigates EPS8's role in actin-based protrusions, finding it dampens growth and prolongs lifetime by acting as a leaky capper at filament barbed ends.

PBF/PTTG1IP coordinates focal adhesion formation, polarity and cell motility

This study identifies PBF/PTTG1IP as an endogenous regulator of cell adhesion, polarity, and directional motility by analyzing knockout models and phosphoproteomic data.

Dynamic Compression Platform for Live Imaging of Scaffold-Transmitted Cellular Mechanoresponses

The paper introduces a device to study mechanoresponses in cells under scaffold-transmitted compression, showing dynamic calcium increases in MC3T3-E1 cells.

Matrix Viscoelasticity Regulates the Stemness and Multilineage differentiation of Primary Neural Progenitor-Stem Cells in 3D

This study shows that matrix stress relaxation influences stemness and multilineage differentiation of neural progenitor-stem cells in 3D by modulating mechanotransduction pathways.