Research Interests

Prof. Saraswathibhatla’s lab investigates biophysics and mechanotransduction mechanisms of cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions during breast cancer progression using 2D and 3D in vitro models that mimic human physiological tissue conditions. The lab employs various tools and techniques, such as novel biomaterials with tunable mechanical properties, biophysical and molecular biology assays, 2D and 3D quantitative imaging, and high-resolution confocal microscopy. We hope our biophysics-based approach will provide fundamental insights into the mechanoregulation of breast cancer progression with the potential to translate to improved diagnosis and therapeutics. 

Education

BS, Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, 2015

PhD (Advisor: Jacob Notbohm, PhD), Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin Madison, 2021

Postdoctoral Fellow (Advisor: Ovijit Chaudhuri, PhD), Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 2021-2025

Selected Publications

Chang, J.*, Saraswathibhatla, A*., Song, Z., Verma, S., Sanchez, C., Srivastava, S., Liu, K., Bassik., Marinkovich, P., Hodgson, L., Shenoy, V., West, RB., Chaudhuri, O.Collective invasion of the basement membrane in breast cancer driven by forces from cell volume expansion and local contractility. Nature Materials, 23, 711–722 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-023-01716-9

Saraswathibhatla, A*., Indana, D*. & Chaudhuri, O. Cell–extracellular matrix mechanotransduction in 3D. Nature Reviews Molecular and Cell Biolgy 24, 495–516 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41580-023-00583-1

Saraswathibhatla, A., Zhang, J., Notbohm, J. Coordination of contractile tension and cell area changes in an epithelial cell monolayer. Physical Review E 105, 024404 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.105.024404

Saraswathibhatla, A., Henkes, S., Galles, E.E., Sknepnek, R., Notbohm, J. Coordinated tractions increase the pack size of collectively moving pack in a cell monolayer. Extreme Mechanics Letters, 101438 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eml.2021.101438

Saraswathibhatla, A., Galles, E.E. & Notbohm, J. Spatiotemporal force and motion in collective cell migration. Sci Data 7, 197 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-020-0540-5, J. Spatiotemporal force and motion in collective cell migration. Scientific Data 7, 197 (2021). 

Saraswathibhatla, A., Notbohm, J. Tractions and stress fibers control cell shape and rearrangements during collective cell migration. Physical Review X 10, 011016 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.10.011016