NIH R01 · 2025
Programming cellular behavior by mechanical forces
ABSTRACT Cellular behaviors are modulated by a variety of stimuli in the environment, which can be generally categorized as chemical, physical, and biological factors. Previous work suggests that physical forces, both at the mesoscale of cell-cell interactions and the microscale of ligand-receptor binding events, play a critical role in regulating cell physiology. For example, stem-cell differentiation is regulated by neighboring cells and the stiffness of the extracellular matrix, while T cells are better activated by target cells with a mechanically strong cortex. The T- cell receptor also bears forces exerted from the pMHC, which affects receptor activation in a non-monotonic manner.…
From the public funding record at NIH RePORTER. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.