Collagen VI disorders: Insights on form and function in the extracellular matrix and beyond

2018 ◽  
Vol 71-72 ◽  
pp. 348-367 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shireen R. Lamandé ◽  
John F. Bateman
Keyword(s):  
Extracellular Matrix ◽  
Collagen Vi ◽  
Form And Function ◽  
And Function

Probing Cytoskeletal Mechanics Using Biochemical Inhibitors

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth M. Pryse ◽  
Teresa M. Abney ◽  
Guy M. Genin ◽  
Elliot L. Elson
Keyword(s):  
Extracellular Matrix ◽  
Mechanical Testing ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Cellular Migration ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Form And Function ◽  
Tissue Constructs ◽  
Imaging Results ◽  
And Function

Quantifying the mechanics of the cytoskeletons of living cells is important for understanding several physiologic and pathologic cellular functions, such as wound healing and cellular migration in cancer. Our laboratory develops three-dimensional tissue constructs for assaying cytoskeletal mechanics in controlled conditions. These tissue constructs consist of defined components such as chick embryo fibroblasts and reconstituted rat tail collagen; fibroblasts remodel the collagen extracellular matrix (ECM) and develop a structural environment representative of that which would exist in a natural tissue. Our protocol for quantifying the microscale mechanics of the proteins that comprise the cytoskeleton involves mechanical testing of a tissue construct first in a bath that contains nutrition medium to support the active physiologic functioning of the cells, and next in the presence of inhibitors that selectively eliminate specific cytoskeletal structures. By solving an inverse homogenization problem, the mechanical functioning of these proteins at the cellular level can be estimated. Here, we present a combination of mechanical testing and imaging results to quantify the effects of specific inhibitors on cytoskeletal and extracellular matrix form and function.

Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) of DNA and RNA

1989 ◽  
Vol 47 ◽  
pp. 34-35
Author(s):  
Patricia G. Arscott ◽  
Gil Lee ◽  
Victor A. Bloomfield ◽  
D. Fennell Evans
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Structures ◽  
Inorganic Materials ◽  
Resolving Power ◽  
Scanning Tunneling ◽  
Tunneling Microscopy ◽  
Form And Function ◽  
Dna And Rna ◽  
Calf Thymus ◽  
And Function ◽  
The Relationship

STM is one of the most promising techniques available for visualizing the fine details of biomolecular structure. It has been used to map the surface topography of inorganic materials in atomic dimensions, and thus has the resolving power not only to determine the conformation of small molecules but to distinguish site-specific features within a molecule. That level of detail is of critical importance in understanding the relationship between form and function in biological systems. The size, shape, and accessibility of molecular structures can be determined much more accurately by STM than by electron microscopy since no staining, shadowing or labeling with heavy metals is required, and there is no exposure to damaging radiation by electrons. Crystallography and most other physical techniques do not give information about individual molecules.We have obtained striking images of DNA and RNA, using calf thymus DNA and two synthetic polynucleotides, poly(dG-me5dC)·poly(dG-me5dC) and poly(rA)·poly(rU).

Re-examining the form and function of superstition

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Fluke ◽  
Russell J. Webster ◽  
Donald A. Saucier
Keyword(s):  
Form And Function ◽  
And Function
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