Article
Biology
Daan Vorselen, Sarah R. Barger, Yifan Wang, Wei Cai, Julie A. Theriot, Nils C. Gauthier, Mira Krendel
Summary: The study reveals that during macrophage phagocytosis of antibody-opsonized targets, there is a prominent constriction driven by Arp2/3-mediated assembly of discrete actin protrusions. Contractile myosin-II activity contributes to late-stage phagocytic force generation and target ingestion. Observations of partial target eating attempts and sudden target release suggest that constriction may play a critical role in resolving complex in vivo target encounters.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Eleonora Sarantelli, Apostolis Mourkakis, Lefteris C. Zacharia, Andreas Stylianou, Vasiliki Gkretsi
Summary: As metastasis is a major cause of cancer-related deaths, understanding the cellular and molecular events involved in cancer cell migration and invasion is crucial for developing novel anti-metastatic therapies. Fascin-1, an actin-bundling protein, plays a fundamental role in cell migration processes. It is significantly elevated in most cancers and its high expression is associated with aggressive disease and poor prognosis. Recent studies show that Fascin-1 is critically involved in metastasis and suggest it as a promising target for anti-metastatic treatment.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Philip M. Graybill, Aniket Jana, Rakesh K. Kapania, Amrinder S. Nain, Rafael Davalos
Summary: Post-electroporation cell force undergoes three distinct stages: initial rounding and loss of contractility, followed by a biphasic stage characterized by increased contractility and subsequent force relaxation, and finally cell elongation and recovery of contractility. Increasing voltages applied perpendicular to cell orientation lead to a significant drop in cell viability, indicating that contractile force is a more sensitive metric than cell shape to electroporation.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jason A. Wagoner, Ken A. Dill
Summary: Myosin II is a biomolecular machine responsible for muscle contraction. Multiple motors act cooperatively on a single actin filament, and filament backsliding is crucial for the speed and efficiency of muscle contraction. Evolutionary adaptations have reduced backsliding, optimizing the collective action of myosin II motors.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Biology
Consuelo Ibar, Krishna Chinthalapudi, Sarah M. Heissler, Kenneth D. Irvine
Summary: Scientists have found that Drosophila beta-heavy spectrin, encoded by the karst gene, regulates Hippo signaling through the Jub biomechanical pathway by influencing cytoskeletal tension. They also discovered that it interacts with myosin, providing new insights into the mechanisms of cell shape change.
Review
Cell Biology
James M. Cowan, Jacob J. Duggan, Breanne R. Hewitt, Ryan J. Petrie
Summary: This review discusses the distinct modes of 3D cell migration and the role of non-muscle myosin II (NMII) in generating mechanical forces for migration. It also highlights the potential roles of tropomyosins and septins in regulating NMII activity during 3D cell migration. Investigating the mechanisms controlling NMII activity is important for understanding how cells transition between different modes of 3D migration in response to the physical environment.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Anne-Betty Ndiaye, Gijsje H. Koenderink, Michal Shemesh
Summary: The mammalian cytoskeleton plays an important role in transmitting external forces to the cell interior and generating intracellular forces. The three interpenetrating structural proteins, actin, microtubules, and intermediate filaments, have interdependent functions and the intermediate filaments play a central role in mechanosensitivity. Cytoskeletal crosstalk regulates the stability and organization of all three filament families at different scales, and also affects cell adaptation to external cues.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ka Man Carmen Chan, Ashley L. Arthur, Johannes Morstein, Meiyan Jin, Abrar Bhat, Dorte Schlesinger, Sungmin Son, Donte A. Stevens, David G. Drubin, Daniel A. Fletcher
Summary: Fusion-associated small transmembrane (FAST) proteins are a diverse family of nonstructural viral proteins that drive cell-cell fusion, increasing viral spread and pathogenicity. Unlike viral fusogens with tall ectodomains, FAST proteins have short fusogenic ectodomains that cannot bridge the intermembrane gap between neighboring cells. This work suggests that localized mechanical pressure on the plasma membrane coupled to a membrane-disruptive ectodomain is sufficient to drive cell-cell fusion.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Margaret K. Seeley-Fallen, Michelle Lazzaro, Chaohong Liu, Quan-Zhen Li, Arpita Upadhyaya, Wenxia Song
Summary: Actin-mediated B-cell contraction negatively regulates B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling, while non-muscle myosin II (NMII) participates in B-cell development and antibody responses by regulating B-cell membrane contraction and antigen clustering. Inhibition of NMII enhances BCR signaling, reduces antibody affinity, and increases levels of autoantibodies.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xiaoyu Sun, Gregory M. Alushin
Summary: This article discusses the importance of the actin cytoskeleton and explains how actin filaments can function as molecular force sensors. It introduces two classes of proteins that interpret forces applied to actin filaments, speculating that these proteins are suitable for coordinating cytoskeletal force-feedback and mechanical signaling.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kaustav Bera, Alexander Kiepas, Ines Godet, Yizeng Li, Pranav Mehta, Brent Ifemembi, Colin D. Paul, Anindya Sen, Selma A. Serra, Konstantin Stoletov, Jiaxiang Tao, Gabriel Shatkin, Se Jong Lee, Yuqi Zhang, Adrianna Boen, Panagiotis Mistriotis, Daniele M. Gilkes, John D. Lewis, Chen-Ming Fan, Andrew P. Feinberg, Miguel A. Valverde, Sean X. Sun, Konstantinos Konstantopoulos
Summary: Cells can respond to changes in extracellular fluid viscosity, and higher viscosity can increase cell motility and dissemination. This is achieved through the formation of a dense actin network and the activation of specific signaling pathways. Additionally, cancer cells exposed to high viscosity can acquire mechanical memory and enhance migration and metastasis through transcriptional control.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hesam Babahosseini, Inna A. Belyantseva, Rizwan Yousaf, Risa Tona, Shadan Hadi, Sayaka Inagaki, Elizabeth Wilson, Shin-ichiro Kitajiri, Gregory Frolenkov, Thomas B. Friedman, Alexander X. Cartagena-Rivera
Summary: Hearing depends on the morphologies and mechanical properties of inner ear cell types. This study used advanced microscopy techniques to map the stiffness of different cells in the cochlear epithelium and found bidirectional radial stiffness gradients between supporting cells and sensory hair cells. Deficiencies in TRIOBP, a gene associated with deafness, disrupted these stiffness gradients. Ultrastructural changes were also observed in mutant mice, suggesting that the mechanical properties of the sensory epithelium play a role in mammalian hearing.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Biology
Amandeep S. Arora, Hsiang-Ling Huang, Ramanpreet Singh, Yoshie Narui, Andrejus Suchenko, Tomoyuki Hatano, Sarah M. Heissler, Mohan K. Balasubramanian, Krishna Chinthalapudi, Pekka Lappalainen
Summary: The structures of actin isoforms have been determined at high resolution, revealing their specific conformations and isoform-specific interfaces. These findings provide important insights into the function of actin isoforms and contribute to our overall understanding of cytoskeletal physiology.
Article
Cell Biology
Paroma Chatterjee, Clive P. Morgan, Jocelyn F. Krey, Connor Benson, Jennifer Goldsmith, Michael Bateschell, Anthony J. Ricci, Peter G. Barr-Gillespie
Summary: GIPC3 is initially localized to the cytoplasm of hair cells in the cochlea and then concentrated at cell junctions during postnatal development. Gipc3K & DEG;/K & DEG; mice have normal mechanotransduction currents but lack auditory brainstem response. The disruption of cell junctions and altered distribution of GIPC3 suggest that GIPC3 and MYO6 play a role in shaping the cuticular plate.
JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Yolla German, Loan Vulliard, Anton Kamnev, Laurene Pfajfer, Jakob Huemer, Anna-Katharina Mautner, Aude Rubio, Artem Kalinichenko, Kaan Boztug, Audrey Ferrand, Joerg Menche, Loic Dupre
Summary: The immunological synapse decodes stimulatory signals into adapted lymphocyte responses, and high-content imaging is used to analyze T and NK cells. The study demonstrates how actin cytoskeleton remodeling shapes synapse architecture and affects lytic granule positioning. Analysis of immunodeficient individuals' CD8(+) T cells reveals the roles of ARPC1B and WASP in synapse assembly.
Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Tianqi Gu, Yi Tu, Dawei Tang, Shuwen Lin, Bing Fang
MEASUREMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Materials Science, Biomaterials
Qianwei Zhu, Weiping Ding, Shibo Li, Fenfen Li, Yi Hu, Shengnan Ya, Tianzhi Luo, Dayong Gao, Bensheng Qiu
ACS BIOMATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
(2020)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Bing Fang, Junfeng Ye, Dapeng Ye, Tianqi Gu
JOURNAL OF THE BRAZILIAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING
(2020)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Qian Wang, Tianqi Gu, Yan Su, Jing Cong, Chunguang Miao, Bing Fang, Tianzhi Luo
EXTREME MECHANICS LETTERS
(2020)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Tianqi Gu, Yi Tu, Dawei Tang, Tianzhi Luo
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INSTRUMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT
(2020)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Shengnan Ya, Weiping Ding, Shibo Li, Kun Du, Yuanyuan Zhang, Chengpan Li, Jing Liu, Fenfen Li, Ping Li, Tianzhi Luo, Liqun He, Ao Xu, Dayong Gao, Bensheng Qiu
Summary: This study develops a lifelike bionic liver lobule chip with perfusable hepatic sinusoid networks achieved using microflow-guided angiogenesis methodology and regulated oxygen concentration. The design produces more bionic liver microstructures, higher metabolic abilities, and longer lasting hepatocyte function than other liver-on-a-chip techniques. The unique micropillar design and oxygen concentration play key roles in guiding the assembly of hepatic sinusoid and prolonging hepatocyte function, demonstrating a broad range of applications for chronic and acute hepatotoxicity testing and tumor growth replication.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Composites
Xianhe Cheng, Yuzhang Huang, Quantao Fang, Jingwei Gao, Tianzhi Luo, Ying Zhou, Chuncai Yang
Summary: Unsaturated polyester sizing agents with varying double bond contents significantly impact the interface between carbon fibers (CF) and vinyl ester resins (VER). The study synthesized five types of sizing agents with different double bond contents and investigated their effects on the surface properties of CF and thermo mechanical properties of the resulting CF/VER composites. The findings showed that the double bond content of 10% in the sizing agent resulted in the best wettability for CF with VER, leading to enhanced interfacial bonding and improved mechanical properties of the composites.
COMPOSITES SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Hong Zhang, Chunguang Miao, Zhipeng Huo, Tianzhi Luo
Summary: The sulfidation process has a significant impact on the transformation products and toxicity of ZnO NPs. The main transformation product is ZnS nanoparticles, and its content increases with the sulfur-zinc molar ratio. Sulfidized ZnO NPs show lower toxicity to microalgae initially, but the toxicity increases over time. Zinc ions and transformation products play different roles in toxicity during different treatment periods.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Xue-Meng Wang, Shaoshan Pan, Lin Chen, Li Wang, Yi-Tao Dai, Tianzhi Luo, Wen-Wei Li
Summary: This study reports the first use of biogenic nanomaterials for near-infrared (NIR) photothermal therapy (PTT). Copper selenide nanoparticles synthesized by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 showed high photothermal conversion efficiency and good biocompatibility, leading to efficient tumor ablation in mice without damaging normal tissues.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Tianqi Gu, Zude Luo, Tong Guo, Tianzhi Luo
Summary: This article presents a robust surface approximation method based on moving total least squares, introducing improved RANSAC and CART algorithms to detect outliers, avoiding the adverse impact of human intervention and over elimination.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INSTRUMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Tianqi Gu, Chenjie Hu, Tong Guo, Tianzhi Luo
Summary: The improved moving total least-squares method introduces a new parameter to characterize the geometric feature of abnormal points, generates fitting points using the total least-squares method, and trims outliers based on the connection between variance and abnormal degree, leading to better fitting accuracy and robustness.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INSTRUMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT
(2021)