# Universal Roles of Force Generation and Transmission in Biological Systems

> **NIH NIH R01** · PURDUE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $100,000

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The ability of cells to generate mechanical forces is attributed primarily to molecular interactions between F-
actin and myosin molecular motors in the cell cytoskeleton. Force generated at the cytoskeleton level is
translated to cellular and tissue scales, facilitating interesting biomechanical phenomena at multiple scales. For
example, it endows the actin cytoskeleton with complex, non-equilibrium viscoelastic properties which cannot
be described by theories from statistical physics based on thermal equilibrium. It also drives drastic
morphological transformations of cells accompanied by large-scale flow of the cell cytoskeleton in cell
migration, division, and morphogenesis. In addition, cells use the force produced from the cytoskeleton for
structurally remodeling surrounding extracellular matrices as well as for mechanically communicating with
other cells in wound healing and capillary morphogenesis. In all these biomechanical phenomena, a delicate
balance between force generation, transmission, and relaxation plays a very important role, and the disruption
of the balance has dramatic impacts on the pathogenesis of disease, such as cancer metastasis. Despite the
significance of mechanical forces, understanding of principles that regulate the delicate balance in biological
structures still lacks. By developing multi-scale computational models and employing quantitative in vitro
experiments, we will shed light on universal roles and underlying principles of force generation, transmission,
and relaxation in biological processes at cytoskeleton, cell, and tissue scales. We aim to address two
fundamental questions: i) how forces are generated and lead to non-equilibrium viscoelastic behaviors in
disorganized actin cytoskeleton and ii) how the forces are translated to cellular and tissue scales and regulate
cell shape changes, matrix remodeling, and mechanical communication between distant cells by interacting
and competing with other intracellular and extracellular factors. Outcomes from the proposed research will
provide critical insights into fundamental understanding of physiological and pathophysiological processes
regulated by mechanical forces.
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## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10388935
- **Project number:** 3R01GM126256-05S1
- **Recipient organization:** PURDUE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Taeyoon Kim
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $100,000
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2017-09-15 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10388935

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10388935, Universal Roles of Force Generation and Transmission in Biological Systems (3R01GM126256-05S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10388935. Licensed CC0.

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