Cell morphogenesis across scales: from molecular processes to the biomechanics of cell shape.

我们研究动物细胞控制其形状的基本机制。适当控制细胞形状是生物体生命的关键。从胚胎发育的最早阶段开始，细胞变形以分裂并形成新细胞，并组织成组织。在以后的生活中，精确控制的细胞形状变化对细胞运动至关重要。例如，在免疫反应期间，白色血细胞移动以追踪和杀死病原体。细胞形态控制不当是许多疾病的核心。例如，癌症扩散是由不受控制的细胞运动引起的，癌细胞从原发肿瘤迁移到身体其他部位形成转移。最近的进展揭示了许多参与细胞形状控制的分子。然而，任何物体的形状，无论是死的还是活的，最终都是由机械力决定的。因此，物理因素对于理解细胞形状至关重要。由于缺乏跨学科研究，在理解健康和疾病中细胞形状变化方面的进展一直停滞不前。我们将联合收割机与生物学相结合，研究细胞如何控制自身形态，目的是了解分子间的相互作用如何决定细胞的物理特性，以及这些特性如何控制细胞的形状。将物理学和生物学联系起来将有助于理解与健康和病理细胞运动相关的形状的巨大变化是如何控制的。

We investigate the fundamental mechanisms by which animal cells control their shape. A proper control of cell shape is key to the life of an organism. From the earliest stages of embryonic development, cells deform to divide and form new cells, and to organise into tissues. Later in life, precisely controlled cell shape changes are essential for cell movements. For instance during immune response, white blood cells move to track and kill pathogens. Improper control of cell morphology is at the heart of many diseases. For example, cancer dissemination is caused by uncontrolled cell movements, with cancer cells migrating away from the primary tumour to form metastases in other parts of the body.Recent advances have uncovered many of the molecules involved in cell shape control. However, the shape of any object, dead or alive, is ultimately determined by mechanical forces. Therefore, physical considerations are of key importance to understand cell shape. Progress in understanding cell shape changes, in health and disease, has been stalled by the scarcity of interdisciplinary studies. We combine physics and biology to investigate how cells control their own morphology.Our aim is to understand how molecular interactions determine the physical properties of the cell, and how these properties control cell shape. Bridging physics and biology will help understand how the dramatic changes in shape associated with healthy and pathological cell movements are controlled.