Abstract:

Understanding how cells sense and respond to mechanical cues is a central challenge in mechanobiology, yet current experimental platforms offer limited control over dynamic and spatially heterogeneous mechanical environments. In this talk, I will introduce our work at the intersection of soft robotics, magneto-mechanics, and biology, focusing on magneto-responsive soft materials as active biological substrates. We develop magnetorheological elastomers and magneto-active hydrogels that enable remote, reversible, and real-time control of stiffness and deformation, achieving large local strains and stiffness changes over more than one order of magnitude. These platforms are combined with multiscale computational models, live-cell imaging, and nano-mechanical characterization to study how cells respond to dynamically evolving mechanical cues. I will highlight recent applications to astrocyte and glioblastoma mechanobiology and discuss broader opportunities.

Short biography:

Daniel Garcia-Gonzalez is an Associate Professor at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and head of the MULTIBIOSTRUCTURES Lab. His research combines experimental and computational mechanics, soft robotics, and advanced functional materials to study mechanically mediated biological processes. He is the recipient of an ERC Starting Grant and two ERC Proof of Concept focused on magneto-active platforms for mechanobiology. His work has led to several national and international projects, the creation of a multidisciplinary research group of more than ten researchers, and the co-founding of the spin-off 60Nd. In 2023, he received the Spanish National Award for Young Researchers and was elected to the Young Academy of Spain, where he currently serves as Secretary-General.