BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Memento EPFL// BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:EPFL BioE Talks SERIES "Mechanobiology: From Basic Science Discov eries Towards Translation" DTSTART:20210426T160000 DTEND:20210426T163000 DTSTAMP:20260510T022709Z UID:7cd843e241fe29673c80be66c3e9960fad4b36f92fc949e7ebd977b1 CATEGORIES:Conferences - Seminars DESCRIPTION:Prof. Viola Vogel\, Laboratory of Applied Mechanobiology\, Ins titute of Translational Medicine\, Department for Health Sciences and Tech nology\, ETH Zurich (CH)\nWEEKLY EPFL BIOE TALKS SERIES\n \n(note that th is talk is number one of a double-feature seminar - see details of the sec ond talk here)\n\nAbstract:\nAlthough life is happening far out of equilib rium\, our knowledge of proteins in biology\, pharmaceutical sciences and medicine is still mostly based on knowledge of their equilibrium structure -function relationships.  Yet\, the nanotech tools that physicists have b rought to biology are challenging this notion as many proteins are either part of force-bearing fiber and filamentous networks\, or interact with te nsed protein networks in vivo.  As cells pull on proteins using their own motor proteins\, they can furthermore partially unfold their secondary st ructure and thus switch their structure-function relationships\,  a cruci al step enabling cells to sense forces and the physical properties of thei r environments. Even though major insights into mechanobiological processe s have been gained at the single cell level in the last decade\, it is sti ll not known how to translate these findings to the tissue level.    Pa rtially due to the lack of nanotools to probe forces or mechanical strains in tissues\, the impact of mechanical forces on protein functions and con sequently on downstream cell signaling at the tissue level are still large ly ignored. To address this challenge\, we developed and validated a pepti de-based nanosensor that can read out the tensional state of tissue fibers \, in cryosections and in living animals. We will discuss our recent insig hts by comparing healthy versus diseased organ tissues and in cancer. To g ain further insights into the underpinning mechanisms\, we have set up sev eral 3D microtissue platforms to better control mechanical and biochemical parameters. Discoveries into the mechanobiology at the tissue level are p rone to open new therapeutic avenues.\n\nBio:\nViola Vogel graduated with a PhD in Physics from the University of Frankfurt (1987) with research con ducted at the Max-Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen \, for which she received the Otto-Hahn Medal. After her postdoctoral stud ies in Physics at UC Berkeley\, she started her academic career at the Uni versity of Washington Seattle in Bioengineering (1990-2004)\, where she wa s the founding Director of the Center for Nanotechnology (1997-2003). When moving to ETH Zurich in 2004\, she initially joined the Department of Mat erials and received an ERC Advanced Grant (2009). She then co-founded the Department of Health Sciences and Technology (2012) and chaired the Depart ment from 2018-2020. She is currently Einstein Fellow at the Charité Berl in and Elected Member of the Leopoldina\, the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy o f Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering\, USA\, and serves on m any international Advisory Boards. She received an Honorary Doctor of Phi losophy from Tampere University\, Finland 2012. Her research in Bioenginee ring focuses on how to exploit emerging knowledge in Mechanobiology for Ap plications in Tissue Engineering\, Regenerative Medicine or to treat infla mmatory diseases.\n\n\nZoom link (with registration) for attending remotel y: https://go.epfl.ch/EPFLBioETalks\n\n\nIMPORTANT NOTICE: due to restrict ions resulting from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic\, this seminar can be fo llowed via Zoom web-streaming only\, (following prior one-time registratio n through the link above). LOCATION:via Zoom web-streaming only\, due to Covid-19 pandemic https://go .epfl.ch/EPFLBioETalks https://go.epfl.ch/EPFLBioETalks STATUS:CONFIRMED END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR