Traction-Force Microscopy Analysis of the Cell-ECM Interaction during Cyclic Mechanical Loading

There are still many open questions regarding the structural and mechanical characteristics of basement membranes, and even beyond this, what the influence of these properties on the overlying epithelia or endothelia, and their ability to resist significant mechanical loading is.

One way to study the interaction between the cells and their surrounding matrix is through Traction-Force Microscopy(TFM). The forces exerted by cells onto the substrate have being subject of study for the last decade. However, only few studies have been carried out with concomitant loading of the substrate. Aspects such as the cell sensitivity to strain inhomogeneity in the underlying basement membrane, together with their transitional behavior as a response to different loading conditions needs further investigation.

My project focuses on the mechanical interaction of endothelial cells with their substrate under cyclic loading conditions. The goal is to establish mechanical criteria to rationalize the observed structural and organizational changes of this cell type. One of the key goals is to find an adequate design of a free-standing membrane to analyze the cell-basement membrane interaction. In order to achieve this, as well as other steps of the implementation of the TFM study, the project is carried out in joint collaboration with the Laboratory of Thermodynamics in Emerging Technologies.