Home Department: undeclared
Mentor: Bianxiao Cui (Chemistry)

“Development of a Microfluidics Platform for Elucidating Cell-ECM Interactions: Investigating Integrin-Mediated Adhesions in Disease Pathogenesis”

The extracellular matrix (ECM), a network composed of proteins, is crucial for cell adhesion, migration, and signaling. Cell-ECM interactions are pivotal for human health, as impaired interactions can influence the progression of diseases like cancer and fibrosis in developing tumors and organ malfunction. Anna’s summer project focuses on creating an advanced microfluidics platform to study a new form of integrin-mediated adhesions and investigate the effects of blocking these curved adhesions in cancer cells. Anna aims to uncover new insights in the cellular behaviors within the ECM, leading to breakthroughs in the treatment of disease pathologies driven by abnormal Cell-ECM dynamics.