Expérimental
The proposed internship focuses on mechanobiology, studying how mechanical forces generated by cells affect the formation and functioning of biological tissues. It specifically delves into nematic-like tissues, like muscles, and their response to physical constraints. The research employs magnetic nanoparticles to render cells magnetic, enabling controlled multicellular aggregate formation and deformation to study mechanical properties and cell fate. The internship aims to investigate self-generated forces in artificial muscle-like tissues created by aligning and fusing muscle precursor cells using micro-magnets. The intern will design experimental setups to measure macroscopic and microscopic forces exerted by these micro-tissues. The project aims to elucidate the interplay between mechanical force generation and muscle cell differentiation in these artificial micro-tissues, potentially extending into a doctoral thesis exploring optogenetically induced electrical stresses on them.