Mechanotransduction at a distance: mechanically coupling the extracellular matrix with the nucleus, 2009

Topics: fascia, mechanotransduction, extracellular matrix, cytoskeleton, cell nucleus, cytoplasma

Authors: Ning Wang, Jessica D. Tytell and Donald E. Ingber

Abstract

Research in cellular mechanotransduction often focuses on how extracellular physical forces are converted into chemical signals at the cell surface. However, mechanical forces that are exerted on surface-adhesion receptors, such as integrins and cadherins, are also channelled along cytoskeletal filaments and concentrated at distant sites in the cytoplasm and nucleus. Here, we explore the molecular mechanisms by which forces might act at a distance to induce mechanochemical conversion in the nucleus and alter gene activities.

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