Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Commons^™

Modulation Of Mechanical Stress Mitigates Anti-Dsg3 Antibody-Induced Dissociation Of Cell–Cell Adhesion, Xiaowei Jin, Jordan Rosenbohm, Eunju Kim, Amir Monemian Esfahani, Kristina Seiffert-Sinha, James K. Wahl Iii, Jung Yul Lim, Animesh A. Sinha, Ruiguo Yang

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

It is becoming increasingly clear that mechanical stress in adhesive junctions plays a significant role in dictating the fate of cell–cell attachment under physiological conditions. Targeted disruption of cell–cell junctions leads to multiple pathological conditions, among them the life-threatening autoimmune blistering disease pemphigus vulgaris (PV). The dissociation of cell–cell junctions by autoantibodies is the hallmark of PV, however, the detailed mechanisms that result in tissue destruction remain unclear. Thus far, research and therapy in PV have focused primarily on immune mechanisms upstream of autoantibody binding, while the biophysical aspects of the cell– cell dissociation process leading to acantholysis are less …