Nanocourse: Growth Factor Signalling Interplay with Cell Mechanics

  • Start: Apr 24, 2023
  • End: Apr 26, 2023
  • Speakers: Paul Mendez, Mounir Benamar, Jerome Jatzlau, Sigmar Stricker, Petra Knaus
  • Location: FU Berlin, Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Thielallee 63
  • Room: 2nd floor Seminar Room, Knaus Lab
  • Host: Petra Knaus
Nanocourses consist of lectures followed by the opportunity to gain hands-on experience. Goal of this 3 day workshop is to give an introduction into the crossroads of growth factor signaling and mechanobiology in physiology, pathology and regeneration.

Please register for this course by emailing imprs-bac@molgen.mpg.de


Theoretical aspects of the workshop will cover

  • basic concepts in cell-sensation of mechanical cues
  • integration of extracellular matrix (ECM) biology and external mechanical cues into intracellular signalling pathways (Petra Knaus, Paul Mendez, Mounir Benamar)
  • coupling of mechanobiology with chromatin architecture and gene transcription (Sigmar Stricker, Petra Knaus)

Practical aspects will highlight technologies

  • to apply and measure cellular forces
  • to investigate the cell’s force sensing machinery, in particular its subcellular localization (Paul Mendez, Mounir Benamar)
  • in-silico prediction of genes that underly mechano-dependent regulation (Jerome Jatzlau)


The students will review and present primary research articles and review that provide state of the art data and concepts in mechanobiology and signal transduction.

This workshop is particularly suited for students who want to work at the translational interface of physics, bioinformatics and cell biology.


Before signing up for this nanocourse, please make sure that you can attend all the dates and write them in your calendar. If you do not show up or cancel at very short notice, other interested students will not be able to participate.

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