A new article on T cells response to substrate elasticity in PNAS

dupuyflorian Article

Researchers from LAI and CINAM have joined their efforts to study how T-lymphocytes sense the mechanics of their underlying substrate in vitro, an important but poorly understood question. Using a wide range of stiffnesses for substrates covered with antibodies against T-Cell receptors, they observed that T-cell spread more on increasingly stiff substrates, until a maximal stiffness, where they start to spread less. This is reconciling apparent contradictory results from the literature. It was also observed that involvement of integrins in this process reestablish a monotonous response, as observed for non-immune cells. The observations are rationalized in terms of a simple quantitative clutch model which will be further tested.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1811516116

LAI welcomes new Post Doc members: Jorge Rodriguez Ramos, Claire Valotteau and Luca Piantanida!

lpiantanida Other

Jorge Rodriguez Ramos joined the lab in November 2018, while Claire Valotteau and Luca Piantanida in January 2019. Jorge is working on the project “ Multi-scale mechanics of dynamic leukocyte adhesion ” and Claire is working on “Evolutionary mechanics of adhesion complexes” project both with Felix Rico. Luca Piantanida works with Ignacio Casuso on “Protein-induced lipids partitioning and cell mechanical properties influenced by Salmonella infection”. Welcome!

New review published by LAI members

luoxuanlai Other

A new review on the toxoplasma walls was just published in collaboration
with A. Dumetre from IHU, Marseille. In this review, we highlight how
the oocyst and sporocyst walls sustain the persistence and transmission
of infective T. gondii parasites from terrestrial and aquatic
environments to the host. We further discuss why targeting the oocyst
wall structure and molecules may reduce the burden of foodborne and
waterborne T. gondii infections.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468233018300252?via%3Dihub

Congratulations!