Photoinduced Shape Changes of Giant Vesicles Comprising Phospholipids and Azobenzene-Containing Cationic Amphiphiles.

For the development of new functional materials for various applications, such as drug or gene delivery and environmental remediation, the relationship between function and morphology has been considered an important aspect for controlling affinity to the targets. However, there are only a few reports on this relationship because the molecular strategy for the precise control of vesicle shape has been restricted. Herein, we report the photocontrol of vesicle shape using azobenzene-containing amphiphilic switches.

Engineering pH-Responsive, Self-Healing Vesicle-Type Artificial Tissues with Higher-Order Cooperative Functionalities.

Multicellular organisms demonstrate a hierarchical organization where multiple cells collectively form tissues, thereby enabling higher-order cooperative functionalities beyond the capabilities of individual cells. Drawing inspiration from this biological organization, assemblies of multiple protocells are developed to create novel functional materials with emergent higher-order cooperative functionalities. This paper presents new artificial tissues derived from multiple vesicles, which serve as protocellular models.

The CalcR-PKA-Yap1 Axis Is Critical for Maintaining Quiescence in Muscle Stem Cells.

Quiescence is a fundamental property of adult stem cells. Recent evidence indicates that quiescence is not a default state but requires active signaling that prevents accidental or untimely activation of stem cells. The calcitonin receptor (CalcR) is critical for sustaining quiescence in muscle satellite (stem) cells (MuSCs).

Sustained expression of HeyL is critical for the proliferation of muscle stem cells in overloaded muscle.

In overloaded and regenerating muscle, the generation of new myonuclei depends on muscle satellite cells (MuSCs). Because MuSC behaviors in these two environments have not been considered separately, MuSC behaviors in overloaded muscle remain unexamined. Here, we show that most MuSCs in overloaded muscle, unlike MuSCs in regenerating muscle, proliferate in the absence of MyoD expression.

Cell-autonomous and redundant roles of Hey1 and HeyL in muscle stem cells: HeyL requires Hes1 to bind diverse DNA sites.

The undifferentiated state of muscle stem (satellite) cells (MuSCs) is maintained by the canonical Notch pathway. Although three bHLH transcriptional factors, Hey1, HeyL and Hes1, are considered to be potential effectors of the Notch pathway exerting anti-myogenic effects, neither HeyL nor Hes1 inhibits myogenic differentiation of myogenic cell lines. Furthermore, whether these factors work redundantly or cooperatively is unknown.

[Homeostasis and Disorder of Musculoskeletal System.Molecular mechanism underlying muscle development and regeneration.].

Skeletal muscle composes 30-40% of our body weight and is formed by multinuclear cells called myofibers. The formation of myofiber depends on the dynamic proliferation, differentiation and fusion of the myogenic progenitors during development. In the adult stage, the skeletal muscle exhibits excellent regeneration ability as well, depended on the muscle stem(satellite)cells that generate and repair myofibers.

Notch ligands regulate the muscle stem-like state ex vivo but are not sufficient for retaining regenerative capacity.

Myogenic stem cells are a promising avenue for the treatment of muscular disorders. Freshly isolated muscle stem cells have a remarkable engraftment ability in vivo, but their cell number is limited. Current conventional culture conditions do not allow muscle stem cells to expand in vitro with their bona fide engraftment efficiency, requiring the improvement of culture procedures for achieving successful cell-therapy for muscle disorders.