Affiliation:
1. Biological and Biomedical Sciences Division, College of Health and Life Sciences, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, P.O. Box 34110, Doha, Qatar
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Cells respond to mechanical cues from their environment through a process of mechanosensing and mechanotransduction. Cell stretching devices are important tools to study the molecular pathways responsible for cellular responses to mechanobiological processes. We describe the development and testing of a uniaxial cell stretcher that has applications for microscopic as well as biochemical analyses. By combining simple fabrication techniques with adjustable control parameters, the stretcher is designed to fit a variety of experimental needs. The stretcher can be used for static and cyclic stretching. As a proof of principle, we visualize stretch induced deformation of cell nuclei via incremental static stretch, and changes in IEX1 expression via cyclic stretching. This stretcher is easily modified to meet experimental needs, inexpensive to build, and should be readily accessible for most laboratories with access to 3D printing.
Funder
Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Qatar National Research Fund
Publisher
The Company of Biologists
Subject
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
Cited by
6 articles.
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