Mechanical and Thermodynamic Properties of Mesenchymal Stem Cells Differentiated into Myofibroblasts: A Commentary on the Article “Statistical Mechanics of Non-Muscle Myosin IIA in Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Seeded in a Collagen Scaffold: A Thermodynamic Near-Equilibrium Linear System Modified by the Tripeptide Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD)”

Abstract

Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells found in bone marrow and have the capacity to differentiate into myofibroblast. In contractile myofibroblasts, the molecular motor is the non-muscle myosin (NMIIA) which differs from the muscle myosin by its ultra-slow kinetics. The differentiation of MSCs into myofibroblasts is promoted by the “Transforming Growth Factor” (TGF-b) which represents a potentially target against tissue fibrosis and cancer.