This document discusses three main topics:
1) Pericytes, not glial cells, are the primary cells that form scar tissue after spinal cord injuries. Identifying pericytes could help repair spinal cord damage.
2) Increased stiffness in cancer cells activates proteins associated with cancer growth and metastasis. Manipulating cell stiffness could help stop cancer progression.
3) Applying mechanical force to cells activates cancer-linked proteins, revealing a potential pathway between physical tension and tumor formation. Further study may yield new cancer treatments.
8. Thanks to this study, scientists can now concentrate on these specific cells to attempt to find different ways to repair the nerve system in the case of paralysis, which is unknown today. In addition, this study demonstrates how theories and concepts once believed can change at any moment, which causes studies to shift their direction to obtain results.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13. In my opinion, this study takes scientists one step closer to identifying specific characteristics in cells linked to cancer, one the main causes of worldwide mortality. Today, cancer treatments are not 100% effective. This study can lead to the discovery of cancer impediment, in this case, perhaps targeting cells that have a stiffer matrix to stop the cycle that allows tumor growth in order to stop cancer at an early stage.
