Cardiac and skeletal striated muscles are intricately designed machines responsible for
muscle contraction. Coordination of the basic contractile unit, the sarcomere, and the …

Cardiac muscle cells have an intrinsic ability to sense and respond to mechanical load
through a process known as mechanotransduction. In the heart, this process involves the …

With heart and cardiovascular diseases continually challenging healthcare systems
worldwide, translating basic research on cardiac (patho) physiology into clinical care is …

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a major component of the biomechanical environment with
which cells interact, and it plays important roles in both normal development and disease …

The human heart is capable of functioning for decades despite minimal cell turnover or
regeneration, suggesting that molecular alterations help sustain heart function with age …

Vinculin (Vcl) links actin filaments to integrin-and cadherin-based cellular junctions. Zonula
occludens-1 (ZO-1, also known as TJP1) binds connexin-43 (Cx43, also known as GJA1) …

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death in the western world. With
the current development of clinical diagnostics to more accurately measure the extent and …

Parameterised patient-specific models of the heart enable quantitative analysis of cardiac
function as well as estimation of regional stress and intrinsic tissue stiffness. However, the …

Mechanical forces regulate cell behavior and tissue morphogenesis. During cardiac
development, mechanical stimuli from the heartbeat are required for cardiomyocyte …

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is a widely used imaging technique in material sciences.
After becoming a standard surface‐imaging tool, AFM has been proven to be useful in …