Presidential Young Investigators Award

本研究奖项的最终目标是增强对细胞运动机制的认识，建立有意义的理论基础或测量方法，为选择性调节细胞运动以优化细胞功能提供合理依据。根据化学和物理线索进行定向细胞运动，对于生物医学和生物技术中的许多问题至关重要，由于潜在的细胞牵引力，周围纤维基质的变形和重组也是如此。在体外表征这些特性并了解其在体内的后果是统一的主题，使用细胞行为分析结合单细胞和细胞群体/连续体水平的数学模型。

The ultimate goals of this research award are to enhance the mechanistic understanding, establish theoretical foundations or meaningful measurements, and provide a rational basis for selectively modulating cell motility for optimizing celfunction. Directed cell movements in response to chemical and physical cues are crucial to many problems in biomedicine and biotechnology as are the deformation and restructuring of the surrounding fibrous matrix due to underlying cell tractional forces. Characterization of these properties in vitro and understanding their consequences in vivo are unifying themes approached using cell behavior assays in conjunction with mathematical models at both the single cell and cell population/continuum levels.