Summary
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is funding a research project to investigate how cells convert cytoskeletal forces into intracellular biochemical signals, focusing on the role of LIM proteins in mechanotransduction pathways.
Converting cytoskeletal forces into biochemical signals
US · IL
NIH
grant
awarded
#nih-5R01GM146880-03
What they want
The project will test the hypothesis that force-activated actin binding by distinct LIM proteins is upstream of functionally discrete downstream mechanotransduction pathways. This involves cellular assays and biophysical reconstitution to investigate how zyxin (Aim 1) and FHL1/2 (Aim 2) mediate distinct downstream functions in cytoplasmic cytoskeletal damage repair and nuclear gene expression regulation, respectively. The research will also utilize cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to visualize force-activated actin binding by LIM proteins in structural detail (Aim 3), aiming to establish general principles underlying the modular organization of cytoskeletal mechanical signaling networks.
Deliverables
- Understanding of how zyxin mediates downstream functions in cytoplasmic cytoskeletal damage repair
- Understanding of how FHL1/2 mediates downstream functions in nuclear gene expression regulation
- Structural visualizations of force-activated actin binding by LIM proteins using cryo-EM
- Elucidation of general principles underlying cytoskeletal mechanical signaling networks
Technical requirements
- Cellular assays
- Biophysical reconstitution
- Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM)
Market context
inferred from NAICSR&D in Physical, Engineering, Life Sciences (except Nanotech & Biotech)
NAICS 541715
- US market size
- $95B
- Typical award
- $100K – $50M+
Typical buyers
DoDNSFNIHNASADOE
Commonly required
DCAA-compliant accountingITARCMMC L2
