Mechanical characterization of cell signaling pathways

研究导致细胞形态重塑的分子过程是理解细胞功能的关键，如黏附、运动、分化和屏障功能的调节。这些功能在一定程度上可以用光学显微镜技术通过荧光标记细胞的成分，如膜元素、细胞骨架或各种胞浆蛋白来评估。尽管这些实验提供了丰富的信息，但关于单个元素参与细胞过程仍有许多需要了解。我的研究兴趣集中在发生在单个细胞水平上的机械和结构相关的分子过程。对控制生理功能的分子过程的探索大大受益于新技术的出现，这些新技术允许对细胞机械和结构活动的无标记检测。原子力显微镜(AFM)的力测量模式和光学陷阱可以用来研究单个活细胞中的大量力学相关的细胞事件，具有强大的力和空间敏感度。对细胞层结构变化的监测也可以修正为表面等离子体共振(SPR)，这是一种对发生在表面附近的质量运动非常敏感的技术。正如我们最近的进展所表明的那样，这些技术在细胞生物学中的应用将为深入理解与细胞运动和生理环境中的形态调节相关的机制提供关键信息。

Investigation of molecular processes leading to cell morphological remodelling is key to understanding cellular function such as adhesion, motility, differentiation and the modulation of barrier functions. These functions can be, to a certain extent, assessed by optical microscopy techniques by fluorescently labelling constituents of the cell such as element of the membrane, the cytoskeleton or the various cytosolic proteins. Despite the wealth of information provided by these experiments, there is still a lot to be learned on the involvement of individual elements in cellular processes. My research interest focus at mechanically and structurally relevant molecular processes occurring at the level of individual cells. The exploration of molecular processes governing physiological functions has significantly benefited from the emergence of novel techniques allowing for label free detection of cellular mechanical and structural activity. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) in force measurement mode and the optical trap can be used to investigate a multitude of mechanically relevant cellular events in individual living cells with great force and spatial sensitivity. The monitoring of structural changes occurring in cell layer are also amendable to surface plasmon resonance (SPR) which is a technique exquisitely sensitive to mass movement occurring in the vicinity of a surface. As demonstrated in our recent progress, the application of these techniques in cell biology will provides crucial information for an in-depth understanding of mechanisms related to cellular movement and morphological regulation in physiological context.