Mechanotransduction : From Cell Division To Cardiovascular Diseases

Orateur : Julie LAFAURIE-JANVORE (LadHyX, Ecole Polytechnique, Palaiseau, France)

I will present two examples of cellular mechanotransduction, a term referring to the conversion of a mechanical signal into a biochemical signal which allows cells to sense the physical properties of their microenvironment and to adapt their function accordingly. First I will discuss how mitotic daughter cells regulate their final separation by a force-sensing mechanism. During late cytokinesis, the two daughter cells remain connected by a thin intercellular bridge which is severed during a final process called abscission. Counterintuitively, the pulling forces exerted by the daughter cells on the bridge delay the severing, whereas a release of tension induces abscission. This regulation may have a strong impact on tissue organization and morphogenesis. In the second part of the talk, I will present a microfluidic platform developed to study vascular endothelial cell mechanotransduction. Because atherosclerosis develops preferentially at arterial branches where blood flow is highly disturbed, it is fundamental to understand how flow-derived mechanical forces modulate the function of endothelial cells. This platform allows independent control of various parameters, including the amplitude and direction of the flow, cell density, cell shape and cell polarization relative to the flow, combined with high resolution live imaging of cellular responses. We study intracellular calcium mobilization as a read-out of endothelial cell response to flow-derived forces.

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