Cell Biology
Outline Organization of body systems – Organ – Tissue – Cell— How do we study biology? – Why should we? Research question in biology
Body System Hierarchy System > Organ > Tissue > Cell
Body System Hierarchy Cardiovascular System System > Organ > Tissue > Cell
Body System Hierarchy Cardiovascular SystemBlood Vessel (Organ) Vessel Tissue System > Organ > Tissue > Cell
Cells + Matrix Blood Vessel Tissue The functional part of organs are cells + matrix Matrix are proteins that hold cells together and give tissues mechanical integrity System > Organ > Tissue > Cell
The functional part of organs are cells + matrix Example: bone tissue CellsMatrix
The functional part of organs are cells + matrix Example: bone tissue CellsMatrix Blood vessels Matrix
The Cell
This is not a cell…so what is it? 50 um ~7 um ~5 um ~3 um ~100 nm ~6 um
What can cells do? AdhesionChange Shape (Spread) MigrateCommunicate Direction of Migration Actin Focal Adhesion Hey Hi Matrix Cell
How do we study Biology? In vitroIn vivo Within glassWithin the living
Why do we study Biology? In vitroIn vivo If we understand why cells malfunction, we can learn how to fix them
Research Question: What role does matrix stiffness have on cells? Cancer Stress Shielding
1,000 Pascals 1 kPa 10,000 Pascals 10 kPa 50 um 50x10 -6 m 50 um 50x10 -6 m Let’s look at an experiment on single cells
Substrate Stiffness Affects Cell Size 1,000 Pascals 1 kPa 10,000 Pascals 10 kPa 50 um 50x10 -6 m 50 um 50x10 -6 m
Cell Nucleus (DNA) Cell Proliferation (cell division)
What’s in cells? Proteins run the show Example: Structural proteins give cells shape
What’s in cells? Proteins run the show Other proteins do lots of other things