ILK (integrin-linked kinase) is a central component of cell-matrix adhesions and an important regulator of integrin function. It forms a ternary complex with two other adaptor proteins, PINCH (particularly interesting cysteine- and histidine-rich protein) and parvin, forming the IPP (ILK-PINCH-parvin) complex that regulates the integrin-actin linkage as well as microtubule dynamics. These funct...

The vertebrate heart possesses autoregulatory mechanisms enabling it first to sense and then to adapt its force of contraction to continually changing demands. The molecular components of the cardiac mechanical stretch sensor are mostly unknown but of immense medical importance, since dysfunction of this sensing machinery is suspected to be responsible for a significant proportion of human hear...

Epithelial cell adhesion to the surrounding extracellular matrix is necessary for their proper behavior and function. During pregnancy and lactation, mammary epithelial cells (MECs) receive signals from their interaction with laminin via β1-integrin (β1-itg) to establish apico-basal polarity and to differentiate in response to prolactin. Downstream of β1-itg, the scaffold protein Integrin Linke...

Cell adhesion is important in cancer metastasis. Malignant cells in cancer patients may be exposed to physical forces such as extracellular pressure and shear, that stimulate their adhesion to matrix proteins, endothelium and surgical wounds. Pressure induces phosphorylation of AKT and focal adhesion kinase (FAK), which are required for pressure-stimulated cancer cell adhesion, but what mediate...

The heterotrimeric complex between integrin-linked kinase (ILK), PINCH, and parvin is an essential signaling platform, serving as a convergence point for integrin and growth-factor signaling and regulating cell adhesion, spreading, and migration. We report a 1.6-A crystal structure of the ILK ankyrin repeat domain bound to the PINCH1 LIM1 domain, revealing the molecular basis of ILK-PINCH inter...

We study competitive diffusion games on graphs introduced by Alon et al. [1] to model the spread of influence in social networks. Extending results of Roshanbin [8] for two players, we investigate the existence of pure Nash equilibria for at least three players on different classes of graphs including paths, cycles, grid graphs and hypercubes; as a main contribution, we answer an open question ...

Abdolrazagh Hashemi-Shahraki, Parvin Heidarieh, Samira Azarpira, Hasan Shojaei, Mohammad Hashemzadeh and Enrico Tortoli Author affiliation: Pasteur Institute of Iran, Tehran, Iran (A. Hashemi-Shahraki, S. Azarpira, M. Hashemzadeh); Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran (P. Heidarieh); Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran (H. Shojaei); and San Raffaele Scientific In...

Parvin-e E`tesami, the daughter of Yousef E`tesami, was one of the eminent poets of the constitutional period. Her father, E`tesam al-Molk was a remarkable intellectual. He was one of the very first translators and one of the writers whose work started Romanticism in Iran in the last years of Qajar dynasty. He translated pieces from a vast range of topics and, thus, he had an undeniable role in...