lance kam seminar now, Micro- and Nano-scale Engineering of Cell Signaling

Lance Kim

Columbia University

Clark S360 for Feb 17 (behind peet's)

Micro- and Nano-scale Engineering of Cell Signaling

Proper development and function of tissues relies on the ability of cells to respond to a complex and dynamic extracellular environment.  We have developed new surface patterning and microfluidics techniques for controlling the presentation of multiple biomolecular cues at micro- to nano-scales, and demonstrated the impact of this biocomplexity on cellular function over a range of systems.  At the largest scales of tens of micrometers, the spatial organization of proteins provides a new level of control over the layout of neuron networks.  At smaller scales, we demonstrate a new aspects of spatial crosstalk between integrin and cadherin pathways in adenocarcinoma cells.  At submicrometer scales, T cells are able to recognize different patterns of immune synapse signaling complexes.  Together, these systems demonstrate the importance of spatially resolved cellular signaling, and provide new opportunities for incorporating diverse biophysical phenomena into current understanding of cellular physiology.