Cell Mechanobiology Toward Health Equity

This is a hybrid seminar

Molly Mollica

Abstract: Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death worldwide, and one in four deaths is related to dysfunctional blood clotting. Platelet forces are an emerging metric for the balance of clotting and bleeding due to recent demonstrations of their powerful abilities to predict bleeding risk in trauma patients and detect bleeding dysfunction more sensitively than all existing clinical tests. While existing methods have indicated the clinical and scientific potential of platelet forces, they have been hampered by low-yield, inability to co-measure immunofluorescent cell markers, and/or arbitrary restriction of cell spreading. To address these limitations, we developed a technique (dubbed “black dots”) that enables high-yield co-measurement of cellular forces and immunofluorescent-labeled cell markers in a single image without constraining cell spreading. Applying black dots to measure single-platelet forces, we identify biophysical factors that associate with force generation, determine the effects of platelet storage conditions on function, and identify unique cytoskeletal morphologies induced by different blood proteins. As a result of the high yield of data obtainable with black dots, approaches including multivariate mixed effects modeling, K-means clustering, and machine learning were able to be applied to elucidate complex relationships between platelet activation, structure, and force generation. High-yield mechanobiological investigations of blood and clotting function have direct implications in bleeding and clotting as well as the potential to address and reduce health inequities. Ongoing and future applications towards health equity include sex differences in platelet function after mechanical activation, stroke in sickle cell disease, platelet storage conditions, platelet function in transgender people taking gender-affirming hormone therapies, and thrombosis associated with inflammatory diseases.

Hosted by MAE professor Carlos Castro 

Zoom Link: https://osu.zoom.us/j/99341949988?pwd=eE1xZWxLZjhVRXBDTnpBQ2t1M3Urdz09  
Meeting ID: 993 4194 9988
Password: 175005