Seminar “Cell mechanical properties as markers of aging and disease”

Time

12:00 am

Place

University of Barcelona
Faculty of Physics Building
Room 3.20, 3rd floor 

Speaker

Dr Paola Costelli, Department of Clinical and Biological Science, University of Turin (Italy)

Abstract

Biological processes such as cell proliferation, differentiation, migration and contraction are strictly related to intrinsic cell mechanical properties. The other way round, aging, diseases and drug exposure have been shown to impinge on mechanical properties of normal as well as tumor cells. As an example, differences in mechanical properties between breast cancer cells and their normal counterpart have been reported. Similarly, deformability is different comparing tumor cells characterized by an invasive phenotype to normal cells or to cells that have not yet acquired the invasive capacity.

Mechanical properties become even more important when considering contractile cells/tissues, with particular reference to the skeletal muscle. In this regard, both tone and mechanical properties of muscles and tendons change with aging. In particular, muscle tensile stiffness increases while elasticity decreases. Such changes are also associated with reduced muscle mass (sarcopenia), mainly due to degradation of contractile proteins, that likely contributes to the modulations observed in mechanical properties.

Along this line, the correlation of modifications of mechanical properties with alterations of biological processes could be relevant in order to set up protocols useful for the early identification of different pathological states.