Collagen Remodeling and Degradation: Cellular Mechanisms and Functions
A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cell Motility and Adhesion".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 August 2021) | Viewed by 30113
Special Issue Editors
Interests: remodeling of connective tissues, with a focus on the cell-adhesion-associated signaling systems that regulate the synthesis and degradation of collagen
Interests: cytoskeleton; phosphoinositide signaling; cell mechanics; actin; PIP2; gel; astrocyte; fibrin; gelsolin; cellular engineering; bioengineered therapeutics; devices and drug delivery; cardiovascular and pulmonary cell and tissue mechanics; mechanobiology
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The ubiquitous distribution of collagen molecules throughout metazoans underpins its broad evolutionary importance in tissue and organ development. Collagen is the most abundant protein in mammals and is present as multiple types of collagen, with surprisingly broad structures and functions. These molecules play critically important roles in health and notably in fibrotic diseases, which affect many organs in very large numbers of adult patients throughout the world. In addition to its contributions to the formation of tissue structure and function, collagen is also a central player in the transmission of signals that are critical for matrix homeostasis and is deeply involved in the development of a broad array of human diseases. Recently examined features of the mechanical properties of collagen, particularly when organized into scaffolds that are used for tissue repair and regeneration, have highlighted the considerable complexity of its chemical and physical properties. Collectively, the study of collagen and its myriad forms and functions continues to fascinate biomedical scientists, physicists, and chemists. In this Issue we consider the fundamental characteristics of collagen molecules and their relationships with surrounding cells, which enable matrix remodeling. We examine how the transmission of forces through fibrillar collagen arrays mediates the long-range mechanosensing that is critical for matrix homeostasis and the invasion of matrices by metastatic cancers. Finally, we consider how the near-magical properties of collagen molecules are being harnessed to enable the development of novel biomaterials that are beginning to enable organ regeneration.
Prof. Christopher A. McCulloch
Prof. Paul Janmey
Dr. Patricio Smith
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- matrix mechanosensing
- collagen remodeling
- mechanics of matrix polymers
- adhesion-dependent signaling systems
- bioengineering of novel matrices
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