Recent Featured Research
Confined Migration Shapes the Bony Fate of Stem Cells
Researchers from the Holle Lab at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS discover that migration through confined spaces causes lasting nuclear changes in stem cells, biasing them toward bone formation.
Disrupted Cell-Matrix Interactions Drives Aging and Reveals New Paths for Skin Regeneration
Researchers from the Li Lab discover how α5-integrin–FN interactions preserve dermal integrity, offering new insights for antiaging strategies targeting ECM organization and fibroblast function.
DECIPHERing the Role of Cell-Matrix Interactions in Ageing Heart Health
Researchers from the Soft Nano-Biomaterials Lab at MBI developed a material system to enable precise investigation into how individual ECM properties affect cultured heart cells.
How Dying Cells Signal Growth: Mechanical Forces Drive Targeted Cell Proliferation after Apoptosis
Researchers from the Toyama Lab at MBI reveal how mechanical factors control apoptosis and cell replacement.
Scientists Develop AI-Driven Tool to Map 3D Cellular Landscapes
Researchers from the Beghin Lab at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS combine DeepStar3D algorithm and 3DCellScope interface to develop an experimental tool for real-time interaction with cell data.
The Nano-Heartbuilder: BNIP-2 Influences Mechanosensing in Cardiomyoblast Differentiation
Researchers from the Low Lab at MBI discover a crucial role for the scaffold protein BNIP-2 in orchestrating focal adhesion dynamics during early heart development, offering new insights into heart regeneration strategies.
MBInsights Annual
MBInsights: Decoding the Living Machine
An annual summary of research at the Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore
The annual is a synopsis showing the breadth of the research coming from the MBI. We are very proud of the fact that we have been able to build an institute with state-of-the-art capabilities in super-resolution microscopy and microfabrication. Our open lab environment and the energy of our students and postdocs have combined to take advantage of our experimental tools to answer important biological questions. Because we believe that these tools should be utilized to solve many more problems in the biomedical sciences, we invite you and your colleagues to join us in collaborative studies to solve those problems. Many different disciplines are needed since the problems need the tools of physicists, biologists, computational scientists, and engineers, working side-by-side to better understand how biological systems integrate mechanical cues and physical forces from the world around them.
Read more about MBInsights Annual 2017
See all editions of MBInsights Annual
Hew Choy Leong receives Alumni Award for Academic Achievement
Emeritus Professor Hew Choy Leong, Senior Advisor to MBI, is honoured with an Outstanding Alumni Award for Academic Achievement.
Force sensing in cells at the single molecule level
Professor Yan Jie and his team from the Mechanobiology Institute collaborated with Professor Liu Xiaogang from the Department of Chemistry, NUS, to determine the exact force needed to activate Piezo1, via a DNA-based approach.
Takumi Kawaue
Visiting Research Fellow, Toyama Group
MBI Publications
Latest Publications
- Adriaans IE, Álvarez-Mena A, Dinet C, Morvan E, Lim KS, Dufourc EJ, Wong R, Chastanet A, Michelot A, Carballido-López R, and Habenstein B. ATP-driven membrane binding and polymerization of bacterial actin MreB promotes local membrane fluidization. Biophys J 2026;. [PMID: 42237545]
- Seetharaman S, Devany J, Kim HR, van Bodegraven EJ, Chmiel T, Tzu-Pin S, Chou W, Fang Y, and Gardel ML. Mechanosensitive FHL2 tunes endothelial function via microtubule-actomyosin crosstalk. EMBO J 2026;. [PMID: 42192127]
- Wu Z, Chen S, Fan S, Qiao Z, Qi J, Zhang Y, and Lim CT. Strain-localized luminescent e-skin for high-resolution pressure mapping and visual force feedback. Nat Commun 2026;. [PMID: 42191707]
- Tan RYM, Chen ZX, Sivaraman J, Kong KW, Tan Z, Xu S, Zhu J, Tambyah PA, Seow Y, Koh W, Tan BH, and Chai LYA. Ubiquitination Defect of XIAP as Novel Susceptibility to Invasive Fungal Pneumonia. J Infect Dis 2026;. [PMID: 42184975]
- Liu AZ, Narkar A, Li K, Bertomeu T, Johnson BA, Coulombe-Huntington J, Dong Y, Zhu J, Tyers M, and Li R. The scaffold protein PRR14L is linked to mitotic fidelity and sensitivity to MPS1 inhibition. Mol Biol Cell 2026;:mbcE25120634. [PMID: 42160513]
- Unfried M, Huai W, Pabis K, Jose S, Lim ZM, Alon U, Cvijovic M, Eynon N, Fedichev P, Kim Y, Whye LK, Kerepesi C, Koh W, Kriukov D, Kaeberlein M, Ling F, Pridham G, Rera M, Rulands S, Rutenberg A, Selvarajoo K, Shenhar B, Scheibye-Knudsen M, Tarkhov AE, Teschendorff A, Wang W, Yong EH, Yang Y, Gruber J, and Kennedy BK. Foundations of Gerophysics. Aging (Albany NY) 2026; 18(1):513-530. [PMID: 42139095]
- Lim ZQ, Zhou Y, and Yan J. Long-lived pauses reveal tunable kinetic barriers during Holliday junction migration. Nucleic Acids Res 2026; 54(9). [PMID: 42132109]
- Gandin A, Torresan V, Panciera T, Grenci G, Vanni G, Citron A, Marchionni M, Battilana G, Pelosin M, Busetto R, Piccolo S, and Brusatin G. Flexible high-resolution ECM micropatterning. Nat Protoc 2026;. [PMID: 42129485]
- Kota VG, Yi JLJ, Zhang Z, Yooyuen A, Yu H, and Leo HL. Organoid models reveal mechanistic connections and sirolimus efficacy in liver-vascular steatosis and foam cell formation. Atherosclerosis 2026; 417:120762. [PMID: 42127698]
- Rong Foo MX, Marta TA, Kim YH, Lee XE, Baek DJ, Xi Low SJ, Kim Y, Kang HY, and Dreesen O. Cellular senescence in facial senile lentigo. J Invest Dermatol 2026;. [PMID: 42105907]
A Cell Never Forgets: How Prior Environments Affect Confined Cell Migration
Researchers from the Holle Lab at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS discover that cells retain mechanical memory that influences subsequent migration despite environmental changes, suggesting broader implications for understanding wound healing, fibrosis and cancer metastasis.
How Structural Imbalance Drives Inflammatory Signaling in Senescent Cells
In a study published in Molecular Biology of the Cell led by Celestine Ho at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS, researchers discover that HIF-1α-activation in SASP is a defining feature of the SASP induced by diverse stressors, acting independently of micronuclei generation and cGAS/STING activation.
Violet vs. Blue: Controlling Mechanotransduction with a Single-protein Light Switch
In a study published in the Journal of Cell Science, led by Ryosuke Nishimura at the Mechanobiology Institute, NUS, researchers developed an optogenetic tool to precisely manipulate talin’s structure and observe the resulting cellular behavior.
The Pressure That Shapes Life: Mechanical Forces Behind Egg Maturation
Researchers from the Chan Lab at MBI demonstrate the importance of compressive stress exhibited by theca cells in healthy follicle maturation and surrounding support cells, suggesting a new perspective in understanding infertility.
Quantitative Micro-Elastography: New Imaging Tool Uncovers Age-Dependent Mechanical Changes in Ovarian Tissue
Researchers from the Chan Lab at MBI develop a a novel method called quantitative micro-elastography to create detailed 3D maps of ovarian stiffness in mice—revealing crucial insights that could lead to new infertility treatments.
Contributions
MBInsights is created and curated by the MBI Science Communications Unit. The Science Communications Unit works towards enhancing awareness of progress made in the field of mechanobiology to the general public, science enthusiasts, young students and scientists working in alternative fields. This is achieved by promoting the latest findings in our own research, and in the field in general, through the media, the production of online educational resources, and outreach events.
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