Mechanical forces shape the 'immortal' hydra

Hydras are tiny creatures with regenerative superpowers: they can renew their stem cells and replace damaged body parts in only a few days. Now, researchers in the Tsiairis group have found that mechanical forces turn on ...

First evidence of microtubules' mechanosensitive behavior

Inside cells, microtubules not only serve as a component of the cytoskeleton (cell skeleton) but also play a role in intracellular transport. In intracellular transport, microtubules act as rails for motor proteins such as ...

Visualizing stress in plastics

A research team led by Prof. Dr. Michael Sommer, Professorship of Polymer Chemistry at Chemnitz University of Technology, and PD Dr. Michael Walter, project leader at the Cluster Of Excellence Living, Adaptive, and Energy-autonomous ...

New method makes generic polymers luminescent

Researchers from Hokkaido University have successfully developed a new method to give luminescent properties to generic polymers, such as polystyrene and polyethylene. The technique, which was published in the journal Angewandte ...

Force-sensing PIEZO proteins are at work in plants, too

A family of proteins that sense mechanical force—and enable our sense of touch and many other important bodily functions—also are essential for proper root growth in some plants, according to a study led by scientists ...

Researchers probe cell nucleus response with needle-tip technique

Kaitlin McCreery is the coauthor of a new paper published in Small that deals with diagnosing diseases such as osteoarthritis in soft tissue. McCreery is currently a Ph.D. student in the Neu Lab where she studies the biophysical ...

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