The Effects of Stiffness, Fluid Viscosity, and Geometry of Microenvironment in Homeostasis, Aging, and Diseases: A Brief Review

Seungman Park; Wei-Hung Jung; Matthew Pittman; Junjie Chen; Yun Chen

doi:10.1115/1.4048110

The Effects of Stiffness, Fluid Viscosity, and Geometry of Microenvironment in Homeostasis, Aging, and Diseases: A Brief Review

J Biomech Eng. 2020 Oct 1;142(10):100804. doi: 10.1115/1.4048110.

Authors

Seungman Park¹, Wei-Hung Jung², Matthew Pittman², Junjie Chen², Yun Chen²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218; Center for Cell Dynamics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218; Institute for NanoBio Technology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218.
² Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218; Center for Cell Dynamics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218; Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institute for NanoBio Technology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218.

Abstract

Cells sense biophysical cues in the micro-environment and respond to the cues biochemically and biophysically. Proper responses from cells are critical to maintain the homeostasis in the body. Abnormal biophysical cues will cause pathological development in the cells; pathological or aging cells, on the other hand, can alter their micro-environment to become abnormal. In this minireview, we discuss four important biophysical cues of the micro-environment-stiffness, curvature, extracellular matrix (ECM) architecture and viscosity-in terms of their roles in health, aging, and diseases.

Keywords: ECM architecture; aging; cancer; curvature; homeostasis; stiffness; viscosity.

MeSH terms

Aging
Cell Movement
Extracellular Matrix*
Homeostasis*
Viscosity

Abstract

MeSH terms

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