Jan Lammerding, Ph.D., Professor, Cornell University, Squish and Squeeze – Nuclear Mechanobiology in Physiology and Disease
Speaker:
Jan Lammerding, Ph.D.
Professor in the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering and the Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology
Cornell University
Faculty Host: Ryan Stowers
Title: Squish and Squeeze – Nuclear Mechanobiology in Physiology and Disease
Abstract:
The nucleus is the characteristic feature of eukaryotic cells and houses the genomic information of the cell. The Lammerding laboratory is investigating how physical forces acting on the nucleus can challenge the integrity of the nucleus, alter its structure, and cause genomic, transcriptomic, and other functional changes. In this seminar, I will present recent findings that demonstrate the importance of nuclear mechanobiology during cell migration in confined environments, including the impact on genomic integrity and chromatin organization. In addition, I will discuss our findings that highlight the importance of the nuclear envelope proteins lamins A/C in mediating nuclear stability and mechanotransduction in mechanically stressed cells and tissues, and how lamin mutations result in reduced nuclear stability and increased nuclear damage in striated muscle cells, which may explain the tissue-specific defects in diseases caused by lamin mutations. Insights gained from these studies could improve prognostic approaches and motivate novel therapeutic approaches for these diseases.
Bio:
Jan Lammerding is a Professor in the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering and the Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology at Cornell University. He received his Diplom Ingenieur degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Technology (RWTH) in Aachen, Germany, and completed his Ph.D. in Biological Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, studying subcellular biomechanics and mechanotransduction. Dr. Lammerding served as a faculty member at Harvard Medical School/Brigham and Women’s Hospital before moving to Cornell University in 2011. The research in the Lammerding Laboratory is focused on ‘nuclear mechanobiology’, investigating how the mechanical properties of the nucleus modulate cellular functions, and how physical forces acting on the nucleus affect its structure and processes. The multidisciplinary research approach combines the development of novel experimental assays with cell and molecular biology techniques and in vivo models. Dr. Lammerding has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles, including in Nature, Science, and PNAS. Dr. Lammerding is a Fellow of the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB), the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES), and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE). His research is supported by awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation, and the Volkswagen Foundation. More information on the research in the Lammerding lab is available at: http://lammerding.wicmb.cornell.edu/.
