Long-range intercellular communication is essential for the regulation of embryonic development. Apart from simple diffusion, various modes of signal transfer have been described in the literature. Here, we describe a novel type of cellular extensions found in epithelial cells of the somites in chicken embryos. These filopodia-like protrusions span the subectodermal space overlying the dorsal s...

The multi-scale microstructure of a lotus leaf is rendered non-wetting by micro-protrusions and nano-hairs present on its surface. The mechanical properties of the surface become important since the water droplet has to be supported on the micro-protrusions without wetting the surface. Current work correlates the non-wetting behavior of the lotus leaf with its mechanical properties (Young's mod...

Bin-Amphiphysin-Rvs (BAR) domain proteins play essential roles in diverse cellular processes by inducing membrane invaginations or membrane protrusions. Among the BAR superfamily, the `classical' BAR and Fes/CIP4 homology BAR (F-BAR) subfamilies of proteins usually promote membrane invaginations, whereas the inverse BAR (I-BAR) subfamily generally incur membrane protrusions. Despite possessing ...

Background and aim: Geographic tongue is a recurrent disorder with several associated etiologies. It is believed to be a common occurrence in the patients suffering from recurrent, acute inflammatory diseases. The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of geographic tongue between asthmatic patients and healthy subjects. Materials and Methods: This descriptive-analytic study was...

Protrusions are deformations that form at the surface of living cells during biological activities such as cell migration. Using combined optical tweezers and fluorescent microscopy, we quantified the mechanical properties of protrusions in adherent human embryonic kidney cells in response to application of an external force at the cell surface. The mechanical properties of protrusions were ana...

  Tongue base lesions have a diverse and extensive etiology. One of the benign tongue base lesions is schwannoma. Schwannoma and neurofibroma are two tumors of the peripheral nerves originating in the nerve sheaths. Schwannoma account for just over 1% of benign tumors which have been reported in the ora...

Spines reach out ored dendritic spines look for new challenges, say David Richards, R. Anne McKinney (in work done at the University of Zurich, Switzerland), and colleagues. Spines are small dendritic protrusions on which excitatory synapses connect to axons. Recent evidence suggested that spines are mobile even in adults. Richards et al. now suggest that this mobility allows for post-developme...

Particle sorting methods in microfluidic platforms are gaining momentum for various biomedical applications. Bioparticles are found in different shapes and sizes. However, conventional separation techniques are mainly designed for separation of spherical particles. Thus, there is a need to develop new methods for effective separation of spherical and non-spherical bioparticles for various appli...

BACKGROUND Cdc42, a GTP-binding protein of the Rho family, controls actin cytoskeletal organization and helps to generate actin-based protruding structures, such as filopodia. In vitro, Cdc42 regulates actin polymerization by facilitating the creation of free barbed ends - the more rapidly growing ends of actin filaments - and subsequent elongation at these ends. The Wiskott- Aldrich syndrome p...