The ability of cells to sense and respond to their mechanical environment is critical for many cellular processes but the molecular mechanisms underlying cellular mechanosensitivity are still unclear. Researchers at the University ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 18, 2020
0
19
The cytoskeleton is a structure that not only helps cells maintain their shape and internal organisation, but also enables them to perform functions like movement and migration to sites far from the place where they originated. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 12, 2019
0
47
In extreme slow-motion, a molecule of medicine entering a cell receptor would look a little like a Soyuz space capsule docking at the International Space Station. It would brake here, boost there; rotate, translate and then, ...
Nanophysics
Nov 21, 2016
0
795
Just as we can feel whether we are lying on a soft blanket or hard rocks, our cells sense whether they are in a soft or rigid mechanical environment. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying cells' ability to detect tissue ...
Cell & Microbiology
Nov 3, 2015
0
1087
(Phys.org) —Geckos, found in places with warm climates, have fascinated people for hundreds of years. Scientists have been especially intrigued by these lizards, and have studied a variety of features such as the adhesive ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 3, 2014
0
1
Geckos outclass adhesive tapes in one respect: Even after repeated contact with dirt and dust do their feet perfectly adhere to smooth surfaces. Researchers of the KIT and the Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, have ...
Materials Science
Feb 19, 2014
1
0
A new separation process that depends on an easily-distinguished physical difference in adhesive forces among cells could help expand production of stem cells generated through cell reprogramming. By facilitating new research, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 7, 2013
0
0
Adhesives inspired by the gecko can be made to switch on and off reversibly and repeatedly. The key design parameters for these materials are identified in a study published in Journal of the Royal Society Interface today.
Materials Science
Apr 4, 2013
0
0
(Phys.org)—If you ease up on a pencil, does it slide more easily? Sure. But maybe not if the tip is sharpened down to nanoscale dimensions. A team of researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) ...
Nanomaterials
Oct 17, 2012
1
1
Researchers at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and University of Costa Rica asked why spiders do not stick to their own sticky webs. Repeating old, widely quoted but poorly documented studies with modern equipment ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 1, 2012
3
0
