This project is finalized to the constitution of a network of laboratories interested to characterize the mechanisms that regulate cell adhesion and its role in the control of cell movement, proliferation and survival.
The aims of the proposed network of laboratories can be briefly indicated as the follows:
- identification of the mechanisms regulating leukocyte/endothelium adhesion and determining the recruitment of inflammatory and immune cells in the tissues;
- identification of the integrin-dependent signal transduction mechanisms involved in the control of cell movement, proliferation and survival.
The main tasks of this unit consist in:
- development of trojan peptides to study signal transduction in vivo;
- analysis of the modality of integrin triggering by chemokines;
- biochemical analysis of signal transduction pathways induced by chemokines;
- rolling and sticking under flow experiments;
- cell motility study by digital image analysis.