Protocol tests stiffness-dependent TGF-β1 secretion

This proposed theory asks whether human macrophages, immune cells involved in tissue repair, release the fibrosis-linked signal TGF-β1 differently on soft versus rigid lab surfaces. Researchers would expose cells to resolvin D1, a molecule linked to resolving inflammation, on a 2 kPa soft gel or culture plastic, then compare each with matched untreated cells. TGF-β1 would be measured by ELISA, a protein-detection assay. The key prediction is under twofold increase on the gel but over fivefold on plastic. Imaging would track YAP, a force-responsive protein, moving into the nucleus. That pattern would support a stiffness explanation, while still leaving YAP causality and other mechanisms to test.