Evans Evan A, Calderwood David A
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Science. 2007 May 25;316(5828):1148-53. doi: 10.1126/science.1137592.
Adhesion of a biological cell to another cell or the extracellular matrix involves complex couplings between cell biochemistry, structural mechanics, and surface bonding. The interactions are dynamic and act through association and dissociation of bonds between very large molecules at rates that change considerably under stress. Combining molecular cell biology with single-molecule force spectroscopy provides a powerful tool for exploring the complexity of cell adhesion, that is, how cell signaling processes strengthen adhesion bonds and how forces applied to cell-surface bonds act on intracellular sites to catalyze chemical processes or switch molecular interactions on and off. Probing adhesion receptors on strategically engineered cells with force during functional stimulation can reveal key nodes of communication between the mechanical and chemical circuitry of a cell.
生物细胞与另一个细胞或细胞外基质的黏附涉及细胞生物化学、结构力学和表面键合之间的复杂耦合。这些相互作用是动态的，通过非常大的分子之间的键的缔合和解离起作用，其速率在应力作用下会发生显著变化。将分子细胞生物学与单分子力谱相结合，为探索细胞黏附的复杂性提供了一个强大的工具，即细胞信号传导过程如何加强黏附键，以及施加到细胞表面键上的力如何作用于细胞内位点以催化化学过程或开启和关闭分子相互作用。在功能刺激期间用力探测经过策略性工程改造的细胞上的黏附受体，可以揭示细胞机械和化学回路之间通信的关键节点。
