Engineering cell shape
Cellular shape is a fundamental signal for proliferation, potently regulates cell growth and physiology, and is indicative of specific functions. Membrane protrusions influence cell shape and are highly relevant for adhesion, migration, and rigidity sensing. Specific cell shapes also determine the direction, in which a dividing cell spatially places its daughter cell.
In our ongoing work, we are engineering specific cell shapes using microcontact printing (μCP) and custom-designed adhesive micro-patterned surfaces to better understand how musculoskeletal tissue architecture is lost during degenerative processes such as seen in osteoarthritis.
Controlling cellular shape will likely play an important role in understanding and engineering biomaterials with cell shape-instructive properties for future applications in regenerative medicine.
Publications
Shaping the cell and the future: recent advancements in biophysical aspects relevant to regenerative medicine. Hart ML, Lauer JC, Selig M, Hanak M, Walters B, Rolauffs B. Invited review. J. Funct. Morphol. Kinesiol. 2018, 3(1), 2; doi:10.3390/jfmk3010002. (This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from TERMIS European Chapter Meeting 2017 on “Biomechanics, Morphology and Imaging”).
Understanding Osteoarthritis: how do cells lose their orientation during cell proliferation? Doctoral thesis, S Herrmann; supervisor, B Rolauffs. Medical faculty, Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, 2017
Steering the differentiation of mesenchymal stromal cells by generating defined cell geometries. Master thesis, S Bast; supervisor, B Rolauffs. Faculty of Science, Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, 2016
Microcontact printing of cellular adhesion points with defined geometries for biomechanical applications. Master thesis, J Weber, supervisors, B Rolauffs & A Boccaccini. Institute for Biomaterials, University of Erlangen Nuremberg, 2016
Meet the team

Professor Bernd Rolauffs, M.D.
Director of the G.E.R.N. Research Center
Section Head, Translational Medicine for Cell-Based Therapies
Univ.-Professor in Tissue Replacement
Dept. of Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery, Freiburg University Medical Center
EDUCATION
Habilitation at the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen
Doctor in Medicine, Medical School in Münster, Germany
Postdoctoral
RESEARCH FELLOWSHIPS
Dept. of Biochemistry, Rush University, Chicago, USA
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Biomedical Engineering, Boston, USA
Orthopedic RESIDENCY
Tübingen University Medical Center and BG Trauma Center Tübingen, Germany
Münster University Medical Center, Germany
Sunderland Royal Hospital, UK