Lab of Matrix Biology
Welcome to the Lab of Matrix Biology.
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Focus & Perspective
For mechanical force to induce changes in cellular behaviors, two main processes are inevitable; perception of the force and response to it. Perception of mechanical force by cells, or mechanosensing, requires mechanical force-induced conformational changes in mechanosensors. For this, at least one end of the mechanosensors should be anchored to relatively fixed structures, such as extracellular matrices or the cytoskeletons, while the other end should be pulled along the direction of the mechanical force. Alternatively, mechanosensors may be positioned in lipid bilayers, so that conformational changes in the embedded sensors can be induced by mechanical force-driven tension in the lipid bilayer. Responses to mechanical force by cells, or mechanotransduction, require translation of such mechanical force-induced conformational changes into biochemical signaling. For this, protein-protein interactions or enzymatic activities of mechanosensors should be modulated in response to force-induced structural changes. In the last decade, several molecules that met the required criteria of mechanosensors have been identified and proven to directly sense mechanical force...
¢º Read more (PMID: 30293551)
Recent Publications
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    Nanoscopy of Organelle Handoff Portals Reveals Direct Coupling between Endoplasmic Reticulum Remodeling and Microtubule-Based Transport. Park JS, Lee IB, Moon HM, Jeon H, Lee M, Kim C, Hong SC, Cho M
    ACS nano 2026 Jan 20;
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    Functional unfolding of the integrin αX transmembrane helix. Vu HN*, Lee M*, Situ AJ, An W, Ley K, Kim C#, Ulmer TS#.
    Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2025 Sep 23; 122(38):e2507966122
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    UXT oligomerization is essential for its role as an autophagy adaptor. Yoon MJ, Park J, Lee M, Ohk J, Choi TS, Choi EJ, Jung H, Kim C.
    iScience. 2025 Feb 13;; 28(3):112013.