Mechanisms of cellular tensional homeostasis

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24650248
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Biomedical engineering/Biological material science
• Research Institution: Nagoya Institute of Technology (2013-2014); Tohoku University (2012)
• Principal Investigator: DEGUCHI Shinji 名古屋工業大学, 工学(系)研究科(研究院), 准教授 (30379713)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 張力ホメオスタシス / 炎症慢性化 / 非筋II型ミオシン / 細胞バイオメカニクス / メカノバイオロジー

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Mechanisms regarding cellular tensional homeostasis, i.e., cellular tension is somehow maintained within cells, remain unclear. Previous studies including ours have indicated that nonmuscle myosin II plays a critical role in the maintenance of cellular tension in addition to the well-characterized ATP-dependent generation of the tension. Here we found that the affinity of nonmuscle myosin II to actin is significantly increased once the complex bears tension within stress fibers or cells. Thus, our results suggest that tension-dependent regulation of the rate of ATPase by myosin is essential to achieve the tensional homeostasis.

Free Research Field

生体医工学