Amit Bhole - Masters Candidate

The aim of Amit's experiments is to study the behavior of collagen cleavage when they are under tensile strain [Ref: Strain-controlled enzymatic cleavage of collagen in loaded matrix -- Jeffrey W. Ruberti , Nadim J. Hallab, Biochemical Biophysics Research Communication, Oct 21; 336 (2) 483-9, 2005].

Collagen is the most abundant structural molecule in the extracellular matrix of the vertebrates. The primary role of collagen is that of bearing and transmitting mechanical loads. There are more than 25 distinct types of collagens which are a major constituent of extracellular matrix.

Type I collagen is the most abundant of all types, forming 80-90% of all collagens. Collagen is generally resistant to most proteinase except mammalian collagenase, vertebrate collagenase, bacterial collagenase and Matrix Metalloproteinase (MMPs). MMPs are zinc-dependent proteinase which degrade most of the extra-cellular matrix proteins in humans. The experimental setup includes primarily a Nikon TE2000-E microscope which uses DIC imaging for magnification up to 600x. Micropipettes and Micro manipulators are used in applying the tensile strain in the collagen matrix. Delta Dish controller maintains the environment temperature to 37'C.