BME 7900: "Structure and mechanics: Two critical features of cell and tissue function"
BME 7900 Seminar Series talk by Christopher Chen, University of Pennsylvania.
A long recognized tenet of biological systems is that structure gives rise to function. Mechanical force in contrast has emerged only recently as a critical dimension that links form and function, providing the central effector to sculpt the body plan during morphogenesis, as well as a mechanism for cells to sense and respond to local changes in tissue structure and mechanics.
Despite the realization that forces, form, and function permeate all living systems, we as a research community sorely lack methods to control the mechanics of the environment, the spatial organization of cells, or the architecture of cell-matrix and cell-cell interfaces, which collectively define the boundary conditions for how forces are transmitted into cells. Here, I will describe our efforts to design and build physical microenvironments that explicitly manipulate and monitor the structure and mechanics of cellular interactions with their surroundings, and how we have used these approaches to gain insights into their role in regulating cell and tissue structure, signaling, and function.
I will use our studies to illustrate 1) the multiple means by which cell-material interactions can control cell signaling and function; 2) the importance of novel engineering and materials approaches to understanding cellular decision making; and 3) opportunities and challenges for how to connect these insights to the ultimate translational objectives set by regenerative medicine.
