报告题目：Chirality of Cell Mechanics
报告人: Ting-Hsuan Chen, Associate Professor
报告人单位：City University of Hong Kong
时间：9月25日上午9:00-11:00
地点：英才楼A301
Abstract：Mechanical interactions between cells and microenvironment are required in regulating cell physiology and morphogenesis. Recent reports suggest that cell mechanics with chirality, e.g. rightward-biased cell migration and chiral rotation, may root in the left-right (LR) asymmetry in tissue architecture. Interestingly, because actomyosin cytoskeleton was found important, it predicts a type of cellular mechanics that may mediate the cell chirality and eventually coordinate the formation of LR asymmetry in tissue architecture. To address it, our group have developed a series of assays to measure the chirality of cells. First, we developed a nanowire magnetoscope that reveals a rotating force – torque – exerted by cells. Ferromagnetic nanowires were deposited into cell culture and spontaneously internalized by cells. With a uniform and horizontal magnetic field around the cell culture, nanowires inside the cell were first aligned with the magnetic field and subsequently rotated in clockwise (CW) or counterclockwise (CCW) direction due to the cellular torque. Second, we found a dependence of cell chirality on substrate stiffness, as more cells oriented with biased angles on glass but not on PDMS substrate. Using an image processing method which automates segmentation of individual nucleus, we found that the enhanced chirality correlates with an increased intercellular alignment on glass substrate. Together, our measured cellular torque with rotational bias offers a new approach for characterizing cell’s chiral mechanics and a fundamental framework explaining single cell’s LR asymmetry, paving the way for rebuilding artificial tissue constructs with inherent LR asymmetry in the future.
报告题目：Research Methodology for Cross-disciplinary Area
报告人: Ting-Hsuan Chen, Associate Professor
报告人单位：City University of Hong Kong
时间：9月25日14:00-16:00
地点：英才楼A301
Abstract：As cross-disciplinary collaborations are encouraged to overcome the present-day challenges, the capability to communicate across various backgrounds becomes an essential requirement for leaders in the younger generation. It is particularly important for students major in biomedical engineering, where the education strongly encourages the integration between biological science and engineering tools. In this talk, I will share the experience about research methodology for graduate students. The subjects will be aligned with scientific merits in 1) research ethics, 2) data collection, and 3) determination of research topics. It is hoped to establish a foundation of research principle allowing engineering students to experience the research process, potentially bringing a new knowledge foundation for the next generation.
报告人简介：
Dr. Ting-Hsuan Chen, 香港城市大学机械与生物医学工程系副教授，他一直致力于开展一系列多学科交叉项目，将微/纳米技术应用于多项生物医学研究。他发现了细胞本质上的左右偏斜性质，并成功地利用这一发现来设计预定的组织结构。他最近的研究重点是应用纳米技术测量细胞旋转力和开发DNA纳米传感器以检测活细胞中的生物标记物或用于现场诊断的视觉检测。其部分成果作为封面发表于Circulation Research, Journal of Physiology, Analyst, and Current Stem Cell Research & Therapy, 其他成果发表于ACS Nano，Biomaterials，ACS Applied Materials＆Interfaces，Analytical Chemistry, and Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical等期刊。