title: Matrix control of stem cell fate.
abstract: A key challenge in stem cell research is to learn how to direct the differentiation of stem cells toward specific fates. In this issue of Cell, Engler et al. (2006) identify a new factor regulating stem cell fate: the elasticity of the matrix microenvironment. By changing the stiffness of the substrate, human mesenchymal stem cells could be directed along neuronal, muscle, or bone lineages.
authors.affiliation: Craniofacial Developmental Biology and Regeneration Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
authors.forename: Sharona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Even-Ram
authors.forename: Vira
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Artym
authors.forename: Kenneth M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Yamada
mesh_terms: D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D019070:Cell Lineage; D004548:Elasticity; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D059630:Mesenchymal Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism*