Tissue tension homeostasis by junctional mechanosensing. (2015–2018)
Abstract:
This project examines how tissues use mechanical tension to preserve their integrity. It comes from the
recent appreciation that cells pull on the connections between each other to generate tension. Further,
molecular mechanisms exist for cells to sense changes in this tension and then enlist the appropriate
responses to restore tension. The project will test how local changes in tension are detected, and corrected,
when tissue integrity is compromised by very different causes. The project will establish a new conceptual
paradigm for understanding tissue homeostasis, based on cell biology and biomechanics, with implications
for developmental biology and tissue engineering.