Mechanobiology News and Research

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University of Pennsylvania receives NSF grant to establish Center for Engineering Mechanobiology

The National Science Foundation has awarded the University of Pennsylvania a $24 Million, five-year grant to establish a Science and Technology Center focused on engineering mechanobiology, or the way cells exert and are influenced by the physical forces in their environment.

30 Sep 2016

Mathematical model explains molecular events linked to learning and memory formation

A team of researchers has built a mathematical model that describes the molecular events associated with the beginning stage of learning and memory formation in the human brain.

9 Sep 2016

Research opens door to reveal how platelets sense mechanical forces to initiate blood clotting

Using a unique single-molecule force measurement tool, a research team has developed a clearer understanding of how platelets sense the mechanical forces they encounter during bleeding to initiate the cascading process that leads to blood clotting.

17 Aug 2016

BioAFM Advancements

In this interview, News Medical talks to Dr. Thomas Mueller of Bruker Nano surface, about the advances in BioAFM.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 3 May 2016

Flexible ramp scripting interface added for BioScope Resolve BioAFM

At the 7th AFM BioMed Conference, Bruker’s Nano Surfaces Division today announced the release of RampScript™, which provides extensive new scripting capabilities for the BioScope Resolve® BioAFM. BioScope Resolve has set new standards for highest resolution AFM imaging with the first ever images of microvilli on live cells and by routinely resolving submolecular structures, such as the major and minor groove of DNA, while operating on an inverted microscope.

From Bruker Nano Surfaces and Metrology 11 Apr 2016

Scientists reveal underlying mechanism for formation and growth of epithelial tubes

A team of scientists from Singapore and France has revealed the underlying mechanism for the formation and growth of a fundamental type of tissue - epithelial tubes. Defects in the architecture of epithelial tubes lead to diseases such as cholestasis, atherosclerosis and polycystic kidney disease.

25 Feb 2016

New research reveals underlying biomechanics involved in meniscus fibrocartilage function

Knee injuries are among the top five reasons people visit an orthopedic surgeon for treatments, which include 719,000 total knee replacements performed annually in the United States. Now, new research reveals underlying biomechanics that may be involved in meniscus fibrocartilage function as well as dysfunction and could guide novel treatments for some of the most debilitating and costly orthopedic problems in the U.S., including meniscus tears and age-related joint degeneration.

22 Feb 2016

Study lays foundation for better therapeutic strategies to halt progression of tissue degeneration

Injury and degeneration of fibro-cartilaginous tissues, such as the knee meniscus and the intervertebral disc, have significant socioeconomic and quality-of-life costs. But the development of effective treatment strategies to address pathologies in these load-bearing tissues has been hindered by a lack of understanding of the relationships between their structure and their function.

5 Jan 2016

Researchers develop more precise way to control differentiation of stem cells into bone cells

Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have developed a new, more precise way to control the differentiation of stem cells into bone cells.

1 Dec 2015

Wyss Institute, UMass team up to develop drug-device combination for treating blood clots in stroke patients

Scientists at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University developing novel nanotherapeutics for clearing obstructed blood vessels have teamed up with researchers at University of Massachusetts' New England Center for Stroke Research (NECSTR) to develop a new, highly effective drug-device combination for treating life-threatening blood clots in patients with stroke.

28 Oct 2015

Researchers identify protein that regulates neuron growth

An international team of researchers, led by scientists at the National University of Singapore (NUS), has identified a protein that regulates the growth of neurons by transporting key metabolic enzymes to the tips of neural cells.

18 Sep 2015

New supercomputer models can capture the behavior of human heart valves

New supercomputer models have come closer than ever to capturing the behavior of normal human heart valves and their replacements, according to recent studies by groups including scientists at the Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin and the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Iowa State University.

20 Aug 2015

Study reveals mechanical forces that drive epithelial wound healing

A collaborative study led by scientists from the Mechanobiology Institute at the National University of Singapore has revealed the mechanical forces that drive epithelial wound healing in the absence of cell supporting environment. This research was published in Nature Communications in January 2015.

9 Feb 2015

Study uncovers one way that p53 acts to prevent cancer cell invasion

The tumor suppressor p53 does all it can to prevent oncogenes from transforming normal cells into tumor cells by killing defective cells or causing them to become inactive.

25 Mar 2014

Skin cells can migrate over regions devoid of support from extracellular matrix

A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore have discovered that outer skin cells are able to unite to form suspended "bridges" during wound healing. The new findings will pave the way for tissue engineering, such as the design of artificial skin, and better wound treatment.

13 Dec 2013

UC Santa Barbara professor finds method for measuring cellular forces that shape tissues, organs

Like tiny construction workers, cells sculpt embryonic tissues and organs in 3D space. This task is complicated and requires constant communication between cells to coordinate their actions and generate the forces that will shape their environment into complex tissue morphologies.

10 Dec 2013

Scientists find that activating family of small protein could suppress liver malignancies

A team of scientists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has found that activating a family of small protein, known as Rho, could suppress liver malignancies.

21 Oct 2013

Southampton researchers investigates influence of mechanical forces on cellular, molecular processes

University of Southampton researchers are at the forefront of research into mechanobiology, an emerging field of science combining biology and engineering, which investigates the influence of mechanical forces on cellular and molecular processes.

5 Sep 2013

Biological imaging technologies create a new way to learn about cells

Researchers have married two biological imaging technologies, creating a new way to learn how good cells go bad. "Let's say you have a large population of cells," said Corey Neu, an assistant professor in Purdue University's Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering.

26 Apr 2013

Researcher discovers additional mechanical properties of articular cartilage result in osteoarthritis

A researcher at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research has discovered additional mechanical properties of articular cartilage, a protective cartilage on the ends of bones that wears down over time, resulting in the development of osteoarthritis.

20 Apr 2013