Optimized tweezers enable precise 3-D manipulations of a cell’s organelles.

The physical principles that dictate the formation of these subcellular compartments are simple, but they dictate the organelles’ complex functions.

Acoustic forces can be used to differentiate adherent from non-adherent cells.

From making ribosomes to protecting the integrity of the genome, these membraneless compartments play important roles in the cell. Their behavior is rooted in basic physics.

Titin was discovered four decades ago, but some physiology textbooks fail to recognize the important role it plays in muscle contraction.

Adding or removing water changes how stem cells differentiate.

New tools for investigating how physical forces affect cells

Meet some of the people featured in the February 2017 issue of The Scientist.

The dissection of how cells sense and propagate physical forces is leading to exciting new tools and discoveries in mechanobiology and mechanomedicine.