HAORAN SU¹, KEXIN LI¹, XIAO LIU^1,*, JING DU¹, LI WANG⁴, XIAOYAN DENG^3,*, YUBO FAN^1,2,*

BIOCELL, Vol.45, No.4, pp. 797-811, 2021, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2021.014900

Abstract Endothelial cells arranged on the vessel lumen are constantly stimulated by blood flow, blood pressure and pressureinduced cyclic stretch. These stimuli are sensed through mechanical sensory structures and converted into a series of functional responses through mechanotransduction pathways. The process will eventually affect vascular health. Therefore, there has been an urgent need to establish in vitro endothelial biomechanics and mechanobiology of models, which reproduce three-dimensional structure vascular system. In recent years, the rapid development in microfluidic technology makes it possible to replicate the key structural and functionally biomechanical characteristics of vessels. Here, we summarized the progress of microfluidic chips used… More >

KHAWAR ALI SHAHZAD^1,2,#, ZHONGJIE QIN^3,4,#, YAN LI^1,2,*, DELIN XIA^3,4,*

BIOCELL, Vol.44, No.2, pp. 137-145, 2020, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2020.08500

Abstract Focal adhesions are polyproteins linked to extracellular matrix and cytoskeleton, which play an important role in the process of transforming force signals into intracellular chemical signals and subsequently triggering related physiological or pathological reactions. The cytoskeleton is a network of protein fibers in the cytoplasm, which is composed of microfilaments, microtubules, intermediate filaments, and cross-linked proteins. It is a very important structure for cells to maintain their basic morphology. This review summarizes the process of fluid shear stress transduction mediated by focal adhesion and the key role of the cytoskeleton in this process, which focuses on the focal adhesion and… More >

CHAOJUN TANG¹, XUE WU¹, LINQI YE^1,2, XIANG XIE¹, GUIXUE WANG^1*

BIOCELL, Vol.36, No.3, pp. 97-104, 2012, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2012.36.097

Abstract Devices for the rotational culture of cells and the study of biological reactions have been widely applied in tissue engineering. However, there are few reports exploring the effects of rotational culture on cell morphology, nitric oxide (NO) production, and cell cycle of the endothelial cells from human umbilical vein on the stent surface. This study focuses on these parameters after the cells are seeded on the stents. Results showed that covering of stents by endothelial cells was improved by rotational culture. NO production decreased within 24 h in both rotational and static culture groups. In addition, rotational culture significantly increased… More >

GRACIELA CRISTINA CALABRESE*, ROSA WAINSTOK**

BIOCELL, Vol.28, No.3, pp. 251-258, 2004, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2004.28.251

Abstract Endothelial cells, at the cell-cell borders, express PECAM-1, and have been implicated in vascular functions. The monoclonal antibody MEC 13.3 recognizes PECAM-1 molecule from mouse vessels and allows to analyze the ontogeny of mouse endothelium. At the present, little is known about the molecular basis of differentiation pathways of endothelial cells, that enables its morphological heterogeneity. The purpose of this study was to analyze the pattern of PECAM-1 expression, employing monoclonal antibody MEC 13.3, in cellular suspensions obtained from different mouse organs at pre and postnatal stages.
Fluorescence activated cell sorter analysis showed a different profile of the glycoprotein… More >

Jian Shi^1,*, Baptiste Rode¹, David Beech¹

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, Suppl.2, pp. 98-98, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.06939

Abstract The sensing of blood flow-evoked shear stress is critical in vascular development and maintenance of a healthy vasculature in the adult [1,2]. The identity of molecules which sense and transduce this force into appropriate vascular anatomy and function is therefore keenly sought. A central question is whether there is a force sensor protein (“receptor”) which directly detects the force, acting either alone or in complex with other proteins. Piezo1 channels are Ca²⁺-permeable non-selective cationic channels which are activated by membrane stretch. These channels are important for shear stress-sensing and vascular function in embryonic and adult mice. Through whole-cell perforated patch… More >

Gloria B. Kim^1,†, Qiong Wei^2,†, Virginia Aragon-Sanabria¹, Sulin Zhang², Jian Yang¹, Cheng Dong^1,*

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, Suppl.2, pp. 15-15, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.07137

Abstract Most cells survive and grow by attaching and spreading on a substrate. They generate internal tension that contracts the cell body and thus exert tractions on the underlying substrate through focal adhesions. Traction force also plays a critical role in many biological processes, such as inflammation, metastasis, and angiogenesis. Thus, measuring the cell traction force provides valuable information on understanding the underlying mechanism of these biological processes. Here, a traction force microscopy (TFM) method using super thin hydrogels composed of immobilized fluorescent beads was utilized to quantify the mechanical forces generated during the transmigration of Jurkat cells (a human T… More >

Ning Li^{1, 2, 3}, Xiao Zhang^{1, 2}, Peiwen Li^{1, 2}, Hao Yang^{1, 2}, Chunfang Tong^{1, 2}, Shouqin Lü^{1, 2}, Yan Zhang^{1, 2}, Zhiyi Ye³, Jun Pan^{3, *}, Mian Long^{1, 2, *}

CMES-Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences, Vol.116, No.2, pp. 263-279, 2018, DOI:10.31614/cmes.2018.04079

Abstract Neutrophil (PMN) accumulation on liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) is crucial to pathogen clearance and tissue damage in the liver sinusoids and controlled by a series of adhesion molecules expressed on the surface of PMNs and LSECs. The role of lymphocyte function-associated antigen-1 (LFA-1) and macrophage-1 antigen (Mac-1) in this process is still contentious. Here we compared the dynamic force spectra of the binding of β2 integrin to intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) on LSECs using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and performed free and steered molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to analyze their structural bases of LFA-1- or Mac-1-I-domain and ICAM-1-D1 or… More >

H-Q. Chen^1,2, M. Cheng¹, Y. Li¹, J. Wu¹, X-J. Liu²

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.3, No.4, pp. 221-221, 2006, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2006.003.221

Abstract This article has no abstract. More >

C-W. Lin¹, L-J. Chen¹, C-I. Lee¹, P-L. Lee¹, J-J. Chiu¹

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.3, No.4, pp. 165-166, 2006, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2006.003.165

Abstract This article has no abstract. More >

Alireza Mohammadkarim¹, Manijhe Mokhtari-Dizaji^2,*, Ali Kazemian³, Hazhir Saberi⁴, Mohammad Mehdi Khani⁵, Mohsen Bakhshandeh⁶

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.16, No.4, pp. 275-287, 2019, DOI:10.32604/mcb.2019.06280

Abstract The mechanical properties of living cells are known to be promising biomarkers when investigating the health and functions of the human body. Ionizing irradiation results in vascular injury due to endothelial damage. Thus, the current study objective was to evaluate the influence of continuous radiation doses on the mechanical properties of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs), and to identify Young’s modulus (E) and viscoelastic behavior. Single-dose (0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 Gy) radiation was applied to HUVECs using a Cobalt-60 treatment machine in the current vitro irradiation study. Thereafter, a micropipette-aspiration technique was used to measure the elastic… More >