Epithelial cells sense local stiffness via Piezo1 mediated cytoskeletal reorganization.

Local substrate stiffness is one of the major mechanical inputs for tissue organization during its development and remodeling. It is widely recognized that adherent cells use transmembrane proteins (integrins) at focal adhesions to translate ECM mechanical cues into intracellular bioprocess. Here we show that epithelial cells respond to substrate stiffening primarily via actin cytoskeleton organization, that requires activation of mechanosensitive Piezo1 channels.

Physical memory of astrocytes.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major risk factor for development of neurodegenerative disorders later in life. Short, repetitive, mechanical impacts can lead to pathology that appears days or months later. The cells have a physical "memory" of mechanical events.

COL2A1 Is a Novel Biomarker of Melanoma Tumor Repopulating Cells.

Soft 3D-fibrin-gel selected tumor repopulating cells (TRCs) from the B16F1 melanoma cell line exhibit extraordinary self-renewal and tumor-regeneration capabilities. However, their biomarkers and gene regulatory features remain largely unknown. Here, we utilized the next-generation sequencing-based RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) technique to discover novel biomarkers and active gene regulatory features of TRCs.