Not only stem cells need to sense their environment, but they also must transmit this information to the nucleus. Strikingly, during mesoderm and cardiac mesoderm specification, nuclei undergo drastic morphological changes. We are particularly interested in trying to understand how a physical signal translates to a genetic information to synchronize developmental programs. We use genetic tool to disrupt force transmission to the nuclear lamina and investigate effects on chromatin architecture and lineage specification. We are also really interested to implement these techniques to congenital heart defect patient-derived stem cells.
