Cell adhesion and mechanics
BENOIT LADOUX & RENÉ MARC MÈGE
Mechanical constraints and force transmission play an essential role in multicellular living organisms. They are regulating basic biological processes such as morphogenesis, tumor metastasis and tissue repair. Cell adhesions, coupled to the contractile cytoskeleton, are major sites of force transmission in cells. This mechanical coupling which enables cells to sense, signal, and respond to physical changes in the environment, has however been largely understudied. In this context, we are studying the cooperation between adhesion, mechanical and biochemical signaling for the adaptation of living cells to changes in their physical environment at various scales, from single molecules to tissues.
Keywords: Mechanobiology; Mechanosensitivity; epithelial homeostasis; collective migration; microfabrication; biophysics; cell extrusion; tissue mechanics
+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71 / +33 (0)1 57 27 80 67 Contact Benoît LADOUX / René-Marc MEGE @bladoux.bsky.social / @rmmege.bsky.social
At the single cells level
We study force sensing and mechanotransduction at integrin-mediated cell-extracellular matrix and cadherin-mediated cell-cell adhesions. To answer these questions, we have developed single cells and cell doublets models allowing a tight control of cell-matrix and cell-adhesion formation in a physically and mechanically defined microenvironment. Coupled with advanced microscopy, microforce sensor devices and classical cell biology, these approaches allow us to determine the molecular mechanisms that control cell adhesion and cytoskeleton remodeling, as well as cell shape and migration and their adaptation to environment compliance as well as to cytoskeleton visco-elastic properties and cell’s internal tension generated by myosin motors.
At the cell assemblies level
We study the collective behavior of cells in epithelial sheets, in the context of tissue homeostasis and wound healing. To answer these questions, we developing microfabricated tools and biophysical tools to measure and control the mechanical properties and topology of cell’s microenvironment. These tools are combined with molecular approaches, advanced techniques in light microscopy, image analysis and modeling to study the influence of physical properties of the environment on the organization of epithelial layers, collective cell migration, single and collective cell polarization, cell division and cell extrusion. We are characterizing how physical constraints can lead to emergent dynamical and mechanical properties of various epithelial tissues.
At the tissues and organoid level
We study how more complex epithelial tissues formed of mixed populations of cells (normal/adhesion deficient, normal/cancer, differentiation/stem cells) facing homogeneous and heterogeneous substrates (extracellular matrix chemistry, rigidity, geometry and topography), regulate homeostasis, segregate and/or auto assemble. Our aims are to determine i) how physical constraints of the microenvironment modulate mechanical properties of epithelial cells and tissues, ii) how they direct a variety of cell behaviors including stem cell proliferation, cell extrusion or delamination, cell migration, differentiation, and polarity, and iii) how they impact on the morphogenesis normal epithelial tissue, as well as the pathological development of intestinal rare diseases. Biomimetic substrates coupled to high resolution imaging and biochemistry are instrumental to reach these goals.
Team leaders
Benoit LADOUX, Researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71, room 142B
Rene-Marc MEGE, Researcher/ImagoSeine coordinator, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
Members
- Lucas ANGER, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
- Gregory ARKOWITZ, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71, room 142B
- Manon ARNAUD, Biology engineer, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
- Ranjith Kumar CHILUPURI, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
- Tien DANG, Biology engineer, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 68, room 142B
Simon DE BECO, Assistant Professor, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71, room 142B
Olivier DESTRIAN, Postdoctoral researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B- Andrea DIAZ, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB
- Marc Antoine FARDIN, Researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
- Clara Godinot, Intern, LADOUX/MEGE LAB
- Pan JIANG, Postdoctoral researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71, room 142B
- Vanessa PAUL, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB
- Carine ROSSE, Researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
- Andreas SCHONIT, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 71, room 142B
Clémence THIANT, PhD student, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 95, room 142B
Hélène VIGNES, Postdoctoral researcher, LADOUX/MEGE LAB+33 (0)1 57 27 80 67, room 142B
Pour contacter un membre de l’équipe par mail : prenom.nom@ijm.fr
Peneti, S. K., Morparthi, S. B., Thiant, C., Alessandro, J. d’, Anger, L., Chilupuri, R., Dang, T., Arnaud, M., Eckert, J., Vassilopoulos, S., Ladoux, B., Mège R.-M., & Discher, D. E. (2026). Vimentin bridges scales to convert polarized cell locomotion into coordinated collective migration. Molecular Biology of the Cell, 0(0), mbc.E26-01-0052. https://doi.org/10.1091/mbc.E26-01-0052
Wu, J., Jiang, P., Yang, X., Bai, C., Miao, Z., Wang, Y., Zhang, H., & Wang, X. (2026). Thermal-driven H-bond reconfiguration for bioinspired high-strength anisotropic supramolecular hydrogels. Materials Horizons. https://doi.org/10.1039/D5MH02364E
Fardin, M. A., Hautefeuille, M., & Sharma, V. (2025). Radical scaling: beyond our feet and fingers. Soft Matter. https://doi.org/10.1039/D5SM00996K
Shen, Y., O’Byrne, J., Schoenit, A., Maitra, A., Mège, R.-M., Voituriez, R., & Ladoux, B. (2025). Flocking and giant fluctuations in epithelial active solids. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 122(16), e2421327122. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2421327122
Schoenit, A., Monfared, S., Anger, L., Rosse, C., Venkatesh, V., Balasubramaniam, L., Marangoni, E., Chavrier, P., Mège, R.-M., Doostmohammadi, A., & Ladoux, B. (2025). Force transmission is a master regulator of mechanical cell competition. Nature Materials, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-025-02150-9
Balasubramaniam, L., Monfared, S., Ardaševa, A., Rosse, C., Schoenit, A., Dang, T., Maric, C., Hautefeuille, M., Kocgozlu, L., Chilupuri, R., Dubey, S., Marangoni, E., Doss, B. L., Chavrier, P., Mége, R.-M., Doostmohammadi, A., & Ladoux, B. (2025). Dynamic forces shape the survival fate of eliminated cells. Nature Physics, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-024-02716-5
Bertrand, T., d’Alessandro, J., Maitra, A., Jain, S., Mercier, B., Mège, R.-M., Ladoux, B., & Voituriez, R. (2024). Clustering and ordering in cell assemblies with generic asymmetric aligning interactions. Physical Review Research, 6(2), 023022. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.6.023022
Rose, N., Estrada Chavez, B., Sonam, S., Nguyen, T., Grenci, G., Bigot, A., Muchir, A., Ladoux, B., Cadot, B., Le Grand, F., & Trichet, L. (2023). Bioengineering a miniaturized in vitro 3D myotube contraction monitoring chip to model muscular dystrophies. Biomaterials, 293, 121935. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biomaterials.2022.121935
Sonam, S., Balasubramaniam, L., Lin, S.-Z., Ivan, Y. M. Y., Jaumà, I. P., Jebane, C., Karnat, M., Toyama, Y., Marcq, P., Prost, J., Mège, R.-M., Rupprecht, J.-F., & Ladoux, B. (2023). Mechanical stress driven by rigidity sensing governs epithelial stability. Nature Physics, 19, 132–141. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41567-022-01826-2
Glentis, A., Blanch-Mercader, C., Balasubramaniam, L., Saw, T. B., d’Alessandro, J., Janel, S., Douanier, A., Delaval, B., Lafont, F., Lim, C. T., Delacour, D., Prost, J., Xi, W., & Ladoux, B. (2022). The emergence of spontaneous coordinated epithelial rotation on cylindrical curved surfaces. Science Advances, 8(37), eabn5406. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abn5406
Balasubramaniam L, Doostmohammadi A, Saw TB, Narayana GHNS, Mueller R, Dang T, Thomas M, Gupta S, Sonam S, Yap AS, Toyama Y, Mège RM, Yeomans JM, Ladoux B. Investigating the nature of active forces in tissues reveals how contractile cells can form extensile monolayers. Nat Mater. 2021 Aug;20(8):1156-1166. doi: 10.1038/s41563-021-00919-2. Epub 2021 Feb 18. Erratum in: Nat Mater. 2021 Mar 9;: PMID: 33603188; PMCID: PMC7611436.
Jain S, Cachoux VML, Narayana GHNS, de Beco S, D’Alessandro J, Cellerin V, Chen T, Heuzé ML, Marcq P, Mège RM, Kabla AJ, Lim CT, Ladoux B. The role of single cell mechanical behavior and polarity in driving collective cell migration. Nat Phys. 2020 Jul;16(7):802-809. doi: 10.1038/s41567-020-0875-z. Epub 2020 May 4. PMID: 32641972; PMCID: PMC7343533.
Publications
Preprint
INTERNATIONAL
Alexandre Kabla
Cambridge University, UK
Xavier Trepat
IBEC, Spain
Alpha Yap
University of Queensland, Australia
Julia Yeomans
Oxford University, UK
Michael Sheetz
Pakorn tony Kanchanawong
Lim chwee Teck
Yusuke Tonama
Yan Jie
Gianluca Grenci
Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), Singapore
NATIONAL
France
Raphael Voituriez, Philippe Marcq
Sorbonne Université, Paris
Sylvie Hénon
Laboratoire Matière et Systèmes Complexes, Université de Paris
Philippe Chavrier, Christophe Lamaze, Jacques Prost
Institut Curie, Paris
Olivier Goulet
Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, Paris
Yong Chen
Ecole Normale Supérieure, Département de Chimie, Paris
Bénédicte Dalaval
CRBM, Montpellier
Internal
Nicolas Borghi
Mechanotransduction: from Cell Surface to Nucleus
Nicolas Minc
Cellular Spatial Organization
Guillaume Romet-Lemonne & Antoine Jégou
Regulation of Actin Assembly Dynamics
28/10/2025 – Andreas Schoenit is the winner of the Mergier Bourdeix Foundation’s French Breakthroughs in Biology award
22/06/2021 – Le prix “Les Grandes Avancées Françaises en Biologie” attribué à Lakshmi Balasubramaniam par l’Académie des Sciences
22/04/2021 – Benoit Ladoux, lauréat de l’ERC Advanced Grant 2020 !