Mechano-regulation of myofibril formation and cardiac remodelling
How do cells know whether they should form heart muscle, a blood vessel or something else? Recent discoveries have shown that one factor influencing heart muscle development is that cells are affected by how rigid their environment is. But we still don’t know how cells measure this rigidity, how this affects the formation of heart muscle fibres, called myofibrils, or how this is different during heart development and heart disease. In heart disease and after a heart attack, functioning heart tissue is lost and the muscle becomes stiff and more rigid. Understanding how heart cells measure these rigidity changes could reveal new ways to treat heart conditions. Dr Thomas Iskratsch has received a BHF Intermediate Basic Science Research Fellowship to research into muscle mechanobiology at King’s College London. Dr Iskratsch will combine cell biology, biophysics and nanotechnology to find out how fibres within heart muscle cells are regulated and respond to the mechanical properties of the environment. For example, he will observe how efficiently heart muscle form essential layers when stretched, pulled, or when grown on man-made fibres which will mimic a range of biological structures like fat tissue (a soft surface) or bone (a hard surface).
Project details
| Grant amount | £539,188 |
|---|---|
| Grant type | Fellowships |
| Application type | Intermediate Basic Science Research Fellowship |
| Start Date | 01 January 2015 |
| Duration | 4 years |
| Reference | FS/14/30/30917 |
| Status | Complete |
